


The Black Candle: Kiss of the Incubi

by StarryKnight94



Category: Ouran High School Host Club - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, M/M, Multiple Pairings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-05-26
Updated: 2017-03-25
Packaged: 2018-04-01 08:14:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 14
Words: 45,638
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4012345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarryKnight94/pseuds/StarryKnight94
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>When the Host Club spends the night at Nekozawa's estate, they accidentally unleash a curse, pitting each host against an evil version of himself. The shadow hosts can only survive by taking what their respective host cares about the most, thereby taking his place forever. Can the Host Club survive the night or will they be banished to the shadow realm eternally?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Some creepy themes and instances of non/dubious consent.

The most terrifying demons you'll ever face come from within. At least that's what they said. So then, Haruhi wondered why the Hitachiins were giving her inner devils such a run for their money.

"Pretty sure you're not supposed to play with that," she murmured as they roughly tossed a cloudy crystal ball back and forth, turning it over and over in their hands, their amber eyes flashing with curiosity. They took turns placing it in the hoods of their forest green vests just for the hell of it and she rolled her eyes. No matter how many times they'd been warned against it, the two insisted on molesting every spooky object in the macabre show room. "Nekozawa-senpai said not to touch any—"

She drew in a breath as the ball tumbled from Kaoru's hood and crashed to the ground, splintering into hundreds of tiny pieces. "… thing."

The twins' eyes slowly slanted toward the front of the chamber where Nekozawa danced from artifact to artifact, prattling on about his family's dark, twisted history. Mori and Hani nodded astutely and Kyoya perused an Iron Maiden in the room's rear. When Nekozawa didn't so much as break for a pause, the twins began to whistle lowly, their eyes drifting toward the ceiling.

"Not our fault!" they sang together before turning to leave her alone with the broken glass. They were abruptly met with the pale ghost of a face, abject horror etched upon its features.

"Hikaru…Kaoru…" Tamaki spoke in a grave tone as he hovered over the twins."I told you not to touch anything!" Tamaki— who hadn't let so much as a thread of his sky blue jersey brush against a single relic — kneeled over the shattered glass, palms outstretched. "Now the children of our children will be cursed for centuries!" He turned teary eyes on Haruhi. "Haruhi's destitute family has enough misfortune as it is!"

Again with that? She gave him a blank gaze. "It's really not like that, senpai."

"Yeah, yeah," Hikaru sighed, he and Kaoru batting their hands at him in unison.

"Don't you think you're overreacting, MiLord?" Kaoru asked.

"After all, we stapled that shrunken head to your back two hours ago," they shrugged. "And nothing exciting has happened yet."

With nearly perfect timing, Tamaki fell into a fit of curses and shrieks, his hands clawing desperately at his back as if he'd been attacked by an army of rabid fireants.

Haruhi sighed deeply and turned away from the fray. She couldn't bare it any longer. Especially not since... Her thought process trailed off, a feeble attempt at avoiding the inevitable.

She couldn't believe she'd developed a crush on that idiot.

It was already incredibly confusing to figure out why and moments like this made it all the more baffling. To think that she'd entered Ouran Academy a nervy honors student with common sense. As of now, she'd become a crossdressing gigalo with a penchant for vain, hopeless crybabies. Oh, how the honorable had fallen.

Frowning, she folded her arms and leaned against an obsidian plated table lined with glowing, gothic candelabras, a Ouija board and a necklace with an eye centered in a triangle. She scrunched the sleeves of her navy blue hoodie over her hands and pulled the material into herself. Did the Nekozawas have to keep it so cool in here? She supposed the seemingly endless arching ceilings didn't help the temperature or the general feeling of unease... It was as if an evil spirit had hijacked a Western cathedral. Not to mention all the weird portraits of cats...

She glanced up just in time to see Nekozawa draw yet another item from a nearby pedastal.

"And this!" he ran adoring fingers over the black dagger. "Is the family blade! The wielder of this dagger and its dark power can absorb the lifeforce from his victims until his strength is unstoppable!" He jabbed the dagger a few times toward Hani, who yelped in response. "Fufufufufuuuu!"

Mori grunted, eyes narrowing.

"Ahem," Nekozawa cleared his throat. "On to the next cursed item! Fufufufu…" He chortled from underneath the black cloak as he crept over the wooden floors to the adjacent table.

"Are you okay, Hani-senpai?" Haruhi frowned at the still trembling senior as she walked toward the less spastic half of their group.

"Haru-chan!" Hani leapt at her with teary eyes, hands outstretched. She stumbled a bit as he caught her around the neck and sobbed into her shoulder. "It's scary here! I just want to go home and eat cake!"

"We're bored," the twins had followed her, apparently tiring of Tamaki's antics. "We thought there'd be ghosts."

"Wouldn't you be scared out of your mind?" Haruhi raised an eyebrow, recalling a certain first year Halloween event.

"Kyoya!" Tamaki groaned as he lumbered over, his shirt severely ripped and stretched, a tiny, wrinkled head rocking on the ground behind him. "This is unacceptable!" He clamped his hands down on the Shadow King's shoulders. "Why did you bring us here?!"

Kyoya sighed, grey eyes unfazed by Tamaki's distress. "Have you forgotten already, Tamaki?" He jerked away and Tamaki nearly toppled over. "We're making up for your mistake."

"He's right, MiLord," Hikaru nodded.

"If you hadn't vacuumed Beelzenef," Kaoru continued.

"We wouldn't owe Nekozawa-senpai anything in the first place," they finished together.

"I- It shouldn't have been in the club room to begin with!" Tamaki stammered. "Nekozawa-senpai knew Haruhi would be using dangerous commoner tools for the 'How to Live as a Commoner' seminar! Why should we have to suffer like this?!"

"He only asked you to stay at the Nekozawa historical estate, Tama-chan," Hani pointed out.

"We only came because you begged us." Kyoya rolled his eyes.

"So we really didn't have to be here…" Haruhi grumbled.

Tamaki had taken to crouching underneath one of the many show tables, his knees pulled to his chest, a curtain of blond falling over his eyes.

"Fufufu! Now gather round!" Nekozawa announced from the head of the room. "It's story time!"

They all drudged reluctantly toward the area, where a grand fireplace launched flame from its entrails. It licked seductively at them and they hurried a bit quicker at the promise of heat. Kyoya was first to take a seat on the jet black, cushioned rug before it. Mori followed, holding Hani steadily to his chest as the boy lolita cast wary eyes upon Nekozawa. The twins had looped their arms around Haruhi, intent on sitting with her until Tamaki sprang from his crouching spot, adamant on the same. This tug-o-war game went on for at least a minute until Nekozawa let a particularly creepy 'fufu' ooze from his lips and they all froze immediately in place: Tamaki, Haruhi, Hikaru and Kaoru all lined up respectively.

"Now I will tell you the tale of Nekozawa Hametsu," Nekozawa began, an eerie grin splitting his lips. "And the black candle."

"Does it have pictures?" the twins asked dully, eyes bored.

"Fufufu… Yes actually." He raised his arm and flourished grandly at the portrait just behind the fireplace mantle. A Caucasian and Japanese man with jet black hair sat behind the oil and century old wear, his hands folded in his lap. He was a thin man, but his stature emitted an air of grandness and power. He sat in complete darkness. Even the linen of his coat and the leather of his shoes bruised black. Perhaps most alluring were Hametsu's deep, dark eyes. In fact, the painting seemed mundane until Haruhi caught a glimpse of them. They bore into her with too much fervor and a strange familiarity, as if every facet of her mind had been laid bare. Her gaze dropped to realize that his lip was turned up slightly. He was smirking, all the while probing intensely into her, his eyes dancing with secrets. The painting seemed suddenly grotesque. She dropped her gaze completely and noticed that the rest of the room had fallen silent. Had they all experienced the same effect?

Nekozawa just grinned before continuing on with his story. "It is said that Hametsu journeyed far to the Western islands where his crew protected a local tribe against a band of pirates. Before he left, a child of the tribe gifted him with a single, white candle.

'Although he thought it an odd gift, he accepted and his ship set sail back home to Japan that night, for he missed his beloved fiance— the person he cared most for in all the world. Just before the ship docked, he decided to propose to his love of many years, but he was a shy man. He chose to present his declaration of love in writing. When he went to the task, he found that the oil in his cabin light had diminished. In his lovestruck haze, he forgot the boy's warning and lit the candle, eager to begin. He didn't notice the white wax as it blackened suddenly and bled under the flame or his shadow as it disobeyed him and soon disappeared altogether. The flame burned throughout the night.

'That evening, as he slept, he dreamed that he opened his eyes to see his own reflection staring down on him with a twisted grin, eyes unblinking. When he awoke, he shook the nightmare off and continued to sail the ship home to safety.

'Just before daybreak, he raced to his estate, the letter in hand, impatient to see his love. When he opened the door to her chambers, he found her tangled in his own arms. Though, it was not him, but the malevolent double that had hovered over him as he slept the night before.

'He pleaded for his love to return to him, but it was too late. She had succumbed to the mark of the demon and as such, belonged to it. With his love lost to him, Hametsu fell into a deep depression, his will gone. Upon the first light, the flame flickered dead with a mysterious gust and the true Hametsu vanished into darkness forever."

"Fufufufufufu…" He gazed upon all seven of them to gauge their reactions.

"Was that actually supposed to scare us?" The twins yawned.

"That's it?!" Tamaki demanded, his fingers digging into Haruhi's and Mori's shoulders, as they sat on either side of him. "But that can't be it!"

"I know, Tama-chan!" Hani cried, tears flowing, and the two embraced. "So sad!"

"So ultimately he became the shadow of his shadow due to his own carelessness and inadequacy," Kyouya stroked his chin, a slight smirk on his lips. "Interesting."

Haruhi tensed, eyeing him from the side. Perhaps they should have been more wary of the shadow demons actually in their midst…

"So let us get this straight," Kaoru sighed.

"The kid gives him a candle and tells him never to light it?" Hikaru asked.

"What's the point in that?" they leaned toward Nekozawa.

Haruhi nodded. "And if Hametsu's shadow demon survived, why did he stick around to carry on the Nekozawa lineage?" she asked, her brow raised. "Why didn't he abandon Hametsu's fiancee as soon as he succeeded?"

"Fufufufu… naive boy," Nekozawa chuckled. "Shadow demons are mirroring creatures. Even though they are separate of intention and logic, they will always take on the memories and emotions of their human counterparts."

"So he loved her?" Tamaki asked, completely enraptured.

"Perhaps," Nekozawa nodded. "But any sinful aspects of a person are extreme in their demon form," he explained. "So he was quite the adulterer. And there were several mysterious murders on the estate during that time."

Tamaki gasped, his hand flying to his lips.

Haruhi frowned. "Ah…" Her eyes hovered over the painting once more, only glimpsing the eyes for a split second. They stared at her expectantly, the glint of malice ever present. She wouldn't put it past him.

"You don't believe this stuff, Haruhi?" Hikaru turned to frown at her.

"Yeah," Kaoru leaned forward to catch her eyes. "We expected that sort of gullibility from MiLord."

"But not from you," they finished.

"What did you say?!" Tamaki demanded, fists clenched. He looked down to face Haruhi and her breath hitched at the sudden eye contact. She wanted to slap herself. Was she honestly that overwhelmed by this idiot? She averted her gaze.

"Don't listen to them, Haruhi!" He shook a finger at her before putting a closed fist to his chest and assuming a brooding pose. "I just find it so tragic that a simple object could cause so much harm."

"It's okay, Tama-chan," Hani reached out to pat his junior's head, although tears still brimmed the rims of his honey colored eyes. "It's just a story. It's not real."

"Fufufufu… But of course it is."

They all watched as Nekozawa pulled a thin white candle from his robes, the length of a human hand.

"GYAAAAAH!" Tamaki shrieked and cartwheeled three times backwards.

"Takashi!" Hani looped his arms around Mori's neck and the Wild Type stood and backed away, eying the candle warily as if it would grow teeth and take a bite out of his cousin.

Despite her general disbelief in the whole thing, Haruhi found herself scooting a space back unconsciously.

The twins just eyed each other, feline grins stretching across their countenances. The fire cast a wicked glow on their features and Haruhi swallowed hard.

Before they could commence to do terrible things, a soft clapping began and they all turned to see Kyoya rising to his feet. "Alright, that's enough of Occult 101," he sighed. "We should start heading to bed." He immediately turned to an obviously distraught Nekozawa. "Thank you for having us, Nekozawa-senpai. As you know, we must depart early tomorrow morning, but we've thoroughly enjoyed—"

"It's kind of small to do so much damage, isnt it, Kaoru?" Hikaru asked from Nekozawa's left side.

"Definitely, Hikaru," Kaoru agreed from the right as they circled him, hands folded behind their backs. " And why's it still so white after all these years?"

"B-Because!" Nekozawa stammered, his attention completely on the twins now, despite Kyoya's exasperated sigh. "It's cursed of course! Cursed items can maintain their likeness for centuries!"

"Ah," Kaoru frowned.

"Well, there's only one way to know for sure…" Hikaru surmised, his sneer reaching his ears.

"Let's test it!" they announced, seizing the candle from Nekozawa's grasp and sprinting toward the fireplace.

"W-Wait!" Nekozawa cried.

"NOOOO!" Tamaki immediately shrieked, his feet fast on their heels. "HIKARU! KAORU!" he bellowed with much authority. "Stop this immediately!"

"Hika-chan! Kao-chan!" Hani wailed. "If I get turned into a shadow, I can't eat cake anymore!"

Breaking out into a run, Tamaki flung himself into the twins, arms stretched around their legs. Cursing, they tumbled to the carpet, the candle still held high in Hikaru's hand. Tamaki climbed up the older twin like a ladder, hand outstretched for the candle when Hikaru tossed it to Kaoru. Snickering, they engaged an unwilling Tamaki in a frenzied game of Monkey in the Middle. Exasperated, the Host Club King let out an enraged cry, his cheeks reddened.

A tired sigh. "Will you three stop playing around?" Kyoya groaned, fingers massaging at his temples. "You can't just light century old relics on fire without permission." He reluctantly stepped toward the chaos. "You do know we can be sued?"

Per usual, the voice of reason was ignored and their game continued. When Kaoru edged closer to the fireplace, Tamaki snapped around to face the person closest to the exit, eyes panicked.

"Nekozawa-senpai!" He called upon spotting him. "Take Haruhi and run!"

"Eh?" Haruhi barely had the time to utter when Nekozawa's arms closed around her waist.

"Right away, Suoh-kun!" Nekozawa nodded, happy to oblige his kohai before hoisting a bewildered Haruhi from her feet and racing toward the arching doorway that led out of the chamber and into the equally chilly, depressing corridors.

Rustling continued inside of the room until Mori calmly sat his cousin upon the carpet, walked to the fireplace and promptly stomped the fire out enveloping them all in darkness.

"Takashi!" Hani cried "It's dark!"

"Dammit!" Hikaru cursed.

"M-MiLord!" Kaoru rasped as if in a chokehold. "Let me go! We can't light it anymore!"

Tamaki panted. "Th- thank God..." he sighed in relief. The rustling sounds quieted and not long after, Haruhi heard footsteps ambling softly her way.

A sigh from Hani. "That was close, huh, Takashi?"

Tamaki grunted in agreement, his breathing still labored. "Good thinking, Mori-senpai."

"Not that good," two twin voices dissented at once. "Ever heard of lighters?"

Before anyone could react, a faint clicking noise echoed off of the ceilings and a small, but growing orange glow brightened the room. Two sinister sneers hovered just above the flickering candle. Zoning out Nekozawa's sudden shriek, Haruhi leaned into the room to see six still shadows reflected against the arched stone walls.

The wax shrank from the wick, curling and then blackening under the flame. Hametsu grinned malevolently at her from the illuminated portrait, his expression more startling, more eerie than ever under the dancing candlelight.


	2. Chapter Two

"You idiots!" Tamaki accused, fingers pressing wildly into the sides of his face and dragging downward. "Look what you've done!" He pointed to the farthest wall where their six shadows floated ominously in the eerie, yellow light.

Haruhi rolled her eyes, finally growing tiresome of the senseless debacle. "It's just a candle, senpai!" She chastised, leaning forward to enter the room again.

"Stop Fujioka!" Nekozawa hissed into her ear, his fingers digging into her shoulders. "If you go in, you'll be cursed too!"

Haruhi gave a deep sigh. "Nekozawa-senpai," she tried to keep the exasperation from her voice, masking it with a reassuring tone. "Those things don't really exist." She moved to pull away. "No one's—"

"Please!" Nekozawa squeezed harder and she turned to give him a stricter argument, but found herself quickly taken aback. He'd gone from fearless occult fanatic to terror stricken school boy in moments, his wide eyes darting about nervously, sweat on his brow. His jet black hood had slumped down, his wig falling off to reveal bright, blond tresses. He was usually so careful about covering up... "We need to get out," he hissed. "Before they come for us!"

For whatever reason, his outburst was enough to stop her in her tracks. She relaxed against the archway's frame, her hand absentmindedly curling around his forearm to comfort him. What curse could be terrible enough to spook the president of The Black Magic Club?

"Quick!" Tamaki commanded in a frenzied tone. "Put it out!"

"Easy, MiLord," Hikaru sighed.

"Nothing's even happening," Kaoru added.

"Our shadows are still there." They both lifted fingers to point at their images on the wall and their shadows returned the gesture as expected. "Boring," they muttered together.

"B-But for how long?!" Hani blubbered, his arms draped tightly around Mori's neck, eyes never leaving their two combined shadows. "Hametsu's shadow didn't leave right away!"

Mori patted his cousin's crying head.

"Just blow it out," an obviously irritated Kyoya groaned, the friendly mask he'd been donning for Nekozawa vanishing more and more as the night drew on. "I'm getting tired and this nonsense has gone on long enough."

"Fine," the twins groaned, their disappointment apparent, but no one wanted a grumpy vice president.

There was a short silence and Haruhi watched from the hallways as the candlelight jumped a bit and then vibrated softly again against the high ceilings.

"Hurry!" Tamaki egged them on.

Another short silence in which the light swayed again and then returned to its usual state.

"It … It won't go out," the twins spoke in unison, an edge of uncertainty creeping in.

Hani gasped.

"Th- that's not funny!" Tamaki stammered. "Give it here!"

There was a sudden whooshing sound followed by intense, desperate blowing. The light jumped once again, but still remained. Tamaki eventually began coughing and Haruhi's stomach tightened.

"What did you do to it?!" The Host King demanded hoarsely, quite obviously on the brink of tears.

"We didn't do anything!" the twins protested, their uncertainty quickly giving way to fear.

"Let me try, Tama-chan!" Hani offered.

There was a deep inhaling noise and then a sudden gust of air. The curtains danced a bit, but the dim light remained. Next, Haruhi could hear the sounds of stomping and thumping. Still the flame blazed on.

"Oh my God…" Tamaki let out a low sob.

"The curse is real!" The Hitachiins followed, their voices heavy with tears. "We're all doomed!"

"WAAAAAAAH!" Hani cried and the light suddenly grew closer and closer. "Neko-kun! It won't go out! HELP—!"

"Stop!" Nekozawa cried out, pulling Haruhi away from the door. "There's a candle holder on the fireplace mantle. Just leave it there and come on out."

Hani stopped in his tracks and the light slowly shrank back into the room. A few moments later, the boys all emerged from the chamber, most of their eyes obsessively lingering on their own shadows to make sure that they were still there. Even Mori peeked once or twice.. Kyoya, on the other hand, fixed his gaze directly on Nekozawa and gave perhaps the greatest sigh of his entire high school tenure.

"Magnesium flakes."

"What?" They all turned to stare at him.

"Magnesium flakes," he repeated with much agitation as he reached up to reposition his glasses at the bridge of his nose. "They're used in trick candles. After you blow them out, the flakes keep them burning with even the lowest level of heat remaining. It's a common tactic in practical jokes." He shot his upperclassman a frigid grin, arms crossed. "But I'm sure you were aware, Nekozawa-senpai?"

"H-Huh?!" Nekozawa took a few steps back, eyes wide. "But I never-!"

"Of course," Hikaru nodded, his fist jamming into his palm.

"Now it all makes sense," Kaoru went on, copying the gesture.

"His crap story wasn't enough on its own," Hikaru continued.

"He needed a scare tactic for the big finish." Kaoru added.

"Let's drag him out onto the roof while he sleeps, " they concluded in unison, cat-like grins returning. "Just in time for sunrise."

"N-NO!" Nekozawa cried, palms raised in defense. "IT'S NOT A TRICK! IT'S AN HEIRLOOM!"

"I don't like people who take joy in the suffering of others." Hani stepped forward, eyes shadowed, tiny fists clenched.

"Ah." Mori grunted from behind him.

"B-But it wasn't me!" Nekozawa protested as the four descended on him while Kyoya turned the other cheek. "That's not what it is! I SWEAR! It's a curse—"

Haruhi's mind wandered off as they commenced to tie him up with much rejoicing. As comforting as the idea of the whole thing being a prank seemed, Nekozawa wasn't the type for practical jokes. Regardless of how much of a joke the Black Magic Club was to everyone else, he personally took it all very seriously. And he seemed legitimately horrified after the twins had lit the candle. His expression flashed across her mind again and she shook her head, unsettled. Eager to leave the confines of her mind, she glanced up to see Tamaki gazing thoughtfully into the candlelit chamber, his expression much like the one she'd just been desperately attempting to escape from.

* * *

 

"Do you think Haruhi'll be okay?" Tamaki asked from his spot on the roll out sofa, the cloudy black sheets pulled tautly over his neck and around his shoulders. Kuma-chan's head poked up from under his chin. "She's our daughter. We should have asked her to stay in our room."

"My room." A sigh. "And I'm sure she's fine, Tamaki," Kyoya replied with a tinge of frustration from the king-sized bed across the fluffy grey carpeting. He placed his glasses on the bedside table with a soft clatter. "Nekozawa-senpai was just playing a joke on you. There's no such thing as shadow demons," he repeated for what felt like the hundredth time as he sank back into the sheets and turned onto his side so that he faced the window. Moonlight bathed the spacious, but otherwise somber suite.

"Well, there's you…"

Kyoya's shoulders tensed. "I'm sorry. Did you change your mind about sleeping here tonight?"

"I'm kidding! I'm kidding!" Tamaki chuckled, raising open palms in jest. "But you're probably right," he breathed softly, his arms wrapped tightly around the stuffed bear, eyes fixed on the bedroom door. "Do you think Haruhi kept her room door locked?"

"I would think so," Kyoya mumbled from his pillow. "You and the twins wouldn't leave until she locked it." He yawned. "And Haruhi's not the type to go wandering."

"Right." Tamaki squeezed the bear and there was a short pause. "… You don't think shadow demons can crawl under doors—"

"Goddamn it, Tamaki…" Kyoya growled, plunging deeper into the pillows as if hoping they would swallow him whole. "If you want to spout paranoid drivel all night, you can use your own room to do it."

"B-But—"

"Do you want to sleep here or not?" Kyoya asked, giving him a final ultimatum.

Tamaki whined his affirmation reluctantly, his mind still focused on Haruhi. He wished he wasn't so terrified so that he could go to the twins' room to worry aloud instead. It's true that the idea of shadow demons were ridiculous and Haruhi probably hadn't unlocked her room door, but he just couldn't shake this sinking feeling that… He swallowed the panic back and forced his eyes away from the door to settle on Kyoya's back.

"Can you at least sleep facing me?"

Kyoya turned just enough to shoot him a scathing over the shoulder glare.

Tamaki winced. "Nevermind."

* * *

 

"It was mean of Neko-kun to play that joke on us, wasn't it Takashi?" Hani asked from the sill of his bedroom window. It overlooked a sizeable lake where pale moonlight shone beautifully on the water's surface.

"Mmhm." Mori nodded as he prepared the boy's bed, fluffing the white pillows and positioning them against the headboard where Usa-chan waited unbothered by the night's events.

"Tama-chan is probably worried sick about Haru-chan right now…" Hani frowned. "And driving Kyo-chan insane."

Mori smiled at the more than likely accurate reading of their underclassmen as he fluffed the last pillow.

Hani sighed. "But Hika-chan and Kao-chan will probably torture poor Neko-kun all night." He took a few steps back until his thighs pressed against cool, soft sheets and he fell backwards onto the comforter. "So he'll get what he deserves…"

There was a short silence in which Hani's gaze found itself moving along the moon-kissed bedding below him, trailing the darkness there carefully.

"Mitsukuni." Mori snapped him out of his daze. "You aren't still worried about your shadow?"

Hani turned to his cousin with teary eyes. "I can't help it, Takashi," he sniffled. "What if my shadow replaces me and I can't eat cake ever again?!"

Mori shook his head, one hand raising up to massage gently at Hani's bangs. "There's no such thing."

"I know," Hani sniffed and rubbed at his eyes. "But will you stay the night with me just in case?"

Mori stared down at his cousin before finally nodding and smiling. "Mm."

* * *

 

"So Nekozawa's probably cried himself to sleep by now…" Hikaru muttered from his huddled position on their shared bed. "We can go put him on the roof…"

"Yeah…" Kaoru mumbled in response from where he sat right next to his brother.

They both stared out directly in front of them where the door to their room stood ajar, leading out into the deep, impenetrable maw. They could only just make out the grey wallpaper across the hall, its frayed edges the only hint of familiarity in the swirling dark abyss. A soft, barely noticeable, but definitely genuine creak echoed from somewhere out in the nothingness and they both yelped. Leaping from the mattress, they flew across the room and slammed the door together, their fingers fumbling to lock it just as quickly. With the deed done, they trudged back toward the bed, clutching one another, their breathing heavy.

"We let MiLord get to us, Kaoru," Hikaru seethed as they fell back first onto the onyx black sheets, their orange and turquoise pajama suits the only vivid color in the dingy room. "It was just a sick joke."

"You think so, Hikaru?" Kaoru turned to his brother, genuine concern in his eyes. "Nekozawa seemed pretty freaked out when we left him tied up down there."

Hikaru half chuckled, half snorted. "Seriously. Did you see the crazy scared look on his face?"

Kaoru snickered. "And he actually begged."

"No, please!" they exaggerated together, eyes locked, hands folded. "They'll get me! They'll get meeee!" They both broke out into hysterical laughter.

"Whose shadow would go after him anyway?" Hikaru cackled, squeezing Kaoru's shoulder for support.

"Doesn't it have to be the person you care most about?!" Kaoru forced through laughter, clinging to Hikaru.

"We'd probably all go after each…" the laughter suddenly dipped off into the piercing, ever present silence they'd been desperately avoiding all night. "… other."

They sat quietly for a few seconds, their gazes sliding down to where their two shadows played intertwined beneath the moonlight from the window.

"Good thing it's not real," Hikaru gave an unruffled shrug, averting his eyes from his shadow.

"Yeah," Kaoru nodded, eyes still rooted to the hazy, dark apparition.

"Don't worry," Hikaru slipped his arms around his brother and eased him backwards toward the pillows and further away from the foreboding, dark wooden door. "I'll protect you, Kaoru," he half teased, half promised.

"No," Kaoru poked him in the side, earning him a flinch. "I'll protect you, Hikaru," he argued playfully before returning the hug.

Snuggling together, they settled into the sheets, eyelids heavy, minds wandering.

"We should have invited Haruhi to stay with us," Hikaru said, his eyes returning to the door.

"Yeah," Kaoru reached up to will his brother's face back toward the rest of the room. "But MiLord would have raised hell."

"Right," Hikaru grumbled. What exactly gave him the right to be so possessive in the first place?

"At least she locked the door," Kaoru argued, trying to sound as reassuring as possible. "There's no way anyone can—"

A booming sound erupted, piercing through the walls and floorboards, emanating from somewhere deep within the mansion. They both jolted upright at once.

"Do you think that was…"

A faint screech followed and they snapped around toward the door. "Haruhi!"

* * *

 

Haruhi had thought she was a reasonable person. A burgeoning adult, long liberated from nonsensical childhood fears. But if that was all true, then why was she still awake?

The ceiling fan droned along with the soft pitter patter of the leaky faucet in her bathroom and the barely, but ever present hum of silence that permeated the entire mansion. Nothing but a sea of grey greeted her from the wallpaper to the carpet, the few hints of decoration a dark, painted landscape of a sole castle on hill and a tall, gothic lamp with a clawed base. All in all, it was pretty torturous. She wouldn't be surprised if Shadow Hametsu had engineered it himself. An audible thump sounded from somewhere outside of the room and she nearly jumped.

Who was she kidding? Her reputation as a reasonable person had sailed out of the window the moment she developed a crush on Tamaki Suoh… She rewound to just an hour or so ago when he stood outside of her door repeatedly demanding that she keep it locked to keep the shadow demons away and insisting that they all sleep outside her room that night. Not that both ideas weren't already absolutely ludicrous to begin with, but wouldn't a shadow demon be perfectly able to slip under a door or sneak past a group of sleeping, (mostly) terrified boys? What an idiot... An image of a concerned Tamaki offering his Kuma-chan to her entered her mind and her heart softened momentarily. She wondered if it smelled like him.

"Huh?!" She shot up, expression shocked as if the thought had been a lightening bolt. What in the hell did she think that for? Shaking both the sentiment and the absurd thought away, she leaned back, her shoulders propped against the pillows, and turned to gaze out of the towering, rounded Victorian style windows. She supposed the room's only picture was fitting. The Nekozawa's historical estate sat upon a lonely hilltop overlooking a lake. It really should have been comforting, but somehow, she didn't feel safe. Apparently, there was always a security team on grounds, but there was no staff as they usually had no residents to tend to. The historical estate was rarely visited save for gutsy historians and occult fanatics like the heir. She could understand its unpopularity…

Sighing, she ran her hands upward over her eyes and forehead and into her bangs, where her fingers raked a bit roughly through the chocolate brown strands. It wasn't that she believed Nekozawa's story. But why would he lie about black magic of all things? She remembered the terrorized look in his eyes. The memory quickly dispersed and morphed into that of Hametsu's smug, wicked countenance. Those mesmerizing eyes beckoned her from her imagination, invited her out into the halls, down the stairway and into the West wing where the portrait awaited. She shook her head as if to dissolve the image.

There is no such thing as a Shadow Demon, she told herself. If Nekozawa didn't buy the trick candle, someone from his family probably did to play a joke on him. Yes. That was it. Somewhat satisfied with her theory, she rolled over onto her side again, facing the window. Still, it was an imaginative story. To think that your own shadow could take your place if it only attains the thing you care about the most. She pictured all six of her clubmates' shadows dancing against the chamber walls and her expression grew pensive.

The twins would no doubt pursue one another. And Hani-senpai and Mori-senpai might do the same— though Hani-senpai was partial to Usa-chan. She giggled to herself. Kyoya-senpai didn't seem to care that strongly for much of anything but money. She wondered jokingly if that was an option. And Tamaki-senpai. What would he pursue? She bit her lip thoughtfully, the ever smiling image of her senpai forming in her mind. What did he most desire? What did he have the most respect for, the most fixation on? Her mind roved over the possibilities.

... Himself? Her lips tugged downward, eyes darkening. It was a cruel thought, but somehow, she really wouldn't be terribly surprised.

Frowning at the sour noted ending of what had began as an innocent, silly thought, she started to close her eyes when she noticed something moving in her peripheral. Her eyes jolted wide immediately and she started to pull back when she realized that the movement wasn't inside of her room. Through her window, she could see into the story high panes of the East wing corridors. There, a familiar form moved swiftly down the hallways. She swallowed hard, her breath catching in her throat. But it couldn't be. Was that…?

Thump. Thump.

Her shoulders jumped at the sudden rapping at her door, fingers clutching the cotton material of her baby blue tee harshly. "Wh—" she started hoarsely, attempting to keep the panic from her tone. "Who is it?!"

"Haruhi, it's me."

Her eyes widened as she reluctantly hoisted herself from the bed. "Kyoya-senpai?" She made her way to the solid wood door, the inscribe of a gargoyle carved just above the brass knob.

"Tamaki's missing," Kyoya's voice came again and her heart dropped as she swung the door open to reveal a thoroughly aggravated Shadow King, dark hair ruffled, folded arms taut. "He's not with you, is he?"


	3. Chapter Three

Haruhi shook her head, dazed by what she was hearing. Tamaki? Missing? "No." She backed away from the door to give Kyoya room to enter. "I haven't seen him since you guys left earlier."

Kyoya grumbled to himself as he stepped into the dark room. "I was almost sure he'd be here…" He pressed the tips of his fingers against his temples, his pinky finger edging his glasses up the bridge of his nose. "Where else would that idiot have gone?"

Haruhi frowned, eyes trailing out into the pitch black hallway. "How long has be been missing?"

Kyoya gave a frustrated shrug. "I don't know. At least half an hour?" He shoved his hands into the pockets of his grey pajama pants and traveled deeper into the dreary room. As far as color schemes went, he almost blended in with the walls. "He didn't go back to his own room and I tried calling him on the way over. He's not picking up."

Haruhi leaned against the wall with crossed arms, her fingers digging anxiously into her elbows. It wasn't like Tamaki to disappear without a trace. For one, he usually dragged the rest of them into his shenanigans and secondly, he was far too much of a chicken to walk the halls of the Nekozawa historical estate alone. He would have had to be forced. She gulped. Or… Her eyes lit up. "Maybe he's with the twins."

"Hm?" Kyoya glanced up.

"They stayed up all night to punish Nekozawa-senpai, right?" Haruhi asked. "Torturing him probably wasn't enough for those two so they made a stop on the way to pick on Tamaki-senpai too." She grinned before turning toward the empty hall. "We should probably find them before Tamaki-senpai has a heart atta—"

"Haruhi."

He'd said it with a certain solemnity that swiftly silenced her and nudged her to turn back around. She almost expected to find him right beside her, his voice still echoing in her ears as if he'd whispered it just over her shoulder. Instead, he was perched near the windowsill closest to her bed, staring intently out into the night.

"There was something there…" He lifted a finger to point across the way, into the moonlit windows of the East wing.

A chill passed over her as she recalled the figure in the window and a terrible sensation swelled in her chest. Something was very wrong.

"I— I don't see anything," she stammered, reluctantly peering out across the hilly expanse. Almost immediately, she dropped her gaze and averted it back toward the door. The air suddenly felt too thick to breathe in. An impulse stemming from her most basic and primal instincts pushed- screamed at her to put as much space between herself and the window as possible. "Forget it, senpai. Let's find the twins."

"Strange…" Kyoya whispered more to himself, his fingers trained on his glasses.

Haruhi shook her head and took a few steps backwards. "Let's call the twins. They could be anywhere." She didn't want to have to search the entire estate for them... Her arms drew tighter over herself to calm an involuntary shudder and she glanced down to see her fingers trembling. Was everyone else's fear that contagious?

"Is there a landline here?" Kyoya asked, still staring vigilantly out of the window.

She raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

He sighed in irritation. "My cellphone. I left it in my room."

"Oh," Haruhi responded quietly, her feet moving a few more steps backwards, further away from the window, away from that nagging feeling. "I thought you said you called Tamaki-senpai on the way over?" she forced out, despite the growing tremor in her voice.

"… Oh," he mirrored her, though there was something added when he did it. Something mocking. Silence fell over the room, short, but just long enough for Haruhi to figure it out. To figure out what was so wrong.

"Senpai?" she croaked, her back finally pressing against the wall beside the open door. "You're not breathing."

Kyoya's form remained perfectly still for a long while when finally, his back straightened up, sudden, jarring laughter spilling from his lips. His fingers slipped languidly from the window sill. "I'm not, am I?"

Haruhi's breath hitched in her throat. That evasive tone that sounded as if he were faraway and just beside her all at once. It was obvious now and there was nothing familiar, nothing natural, nothing… human about it. The realization slowly dawned on her that she didn't want to see that face when it turned from the window. She gathered her will and whether from fear or the absurdity of her own thoughts, she tore from the terror holding her in place and made a mad dash for the hallway.

Kyoya suddenly launched an arm out in one lightening fast motion and the door slammed thunderously shut.

"Forgive me." He removed the glasses and folded them. "I tried to be as convincing as possible, but I suppose there's no fooling you," He turned to face her. "Haruhi Fujioka."

Haruhi gasped audibly as they locked eyes. She suddenly understood why he'd been so obsessive about keeping his glasses up. She'd mistaken it as a nervous tic due to concern for Tamaki, but if she'd caught a glimpse of his eyes from the start, she would have realized a problem immediately. Kyoya's eyes were cool, detached, and even devious at times, but they were rarely vicious and never cruel.

"Right." Kyoya nodded as if reading her mind. He glanced down at the spectacles, his fingers caressing the bends and rims. "He doesn't really need them, but I suppose they do come in handy." With a faint grin, he slipped them into his pajama shirt pocket.

"Y- You…" Haruhi trailed off as he drew nearer. He couldn't be. It had to be a prank. But then, that wasn't like Kyoya at all. Nekozawa maybe, but—

"You seem distressed," Kyoya's seemingly omnipresent tone curled against her ears and she looked up to find him standing directly over her, cool fingers coiling against her cheek and willing her gaze upwards to meet his. "Sleep." The command pressed upon unprepared ears and her eyelids immediately leadened.

"Wai-!" the cry half exited her throat, but it was too late. The anxiety, fear and every remaining energy all seemed to drain from her body in one giant rush and she collapsed, unmoving into the Shadow King's arms.


	4. Chapter Four

"Haruhi!"

Tamaki, Kaoru and Hikaru bellowed as the entire Host Club— sans the commoner— stormed past the already gaping door and into Haruhi's guest room, the carpet burning against their feet as they skidded to a stop.

"Haru-chaaaan!" Hani followed, his hands cupping his mouth to expand the sound's reach. Their footsteps slowed as they entered the dark chamber to find it completely empty. Besides the general feel of greyed out despair that seemed to pervade the entire estate, nothing seemed out of the ordinary. A few textbooks and an open ledger lay open on the writing desk where she'd likely been studying before she'd gone to bed. The bedsheets had been pulled back and ruffled, but not so scattered that they suspected foul play.

Mori knelt beside the bed to explore its underside as Kyoya walked past him, examining the space with a flashlight as he strode. Hani's tiny head poked in and out of the room's two closets. "I-It is creepy in here," Hani whimpered as though he were attempting to persuade himself. "Maybe she left to find another room to sleep in!"

Tamaki let out a strangled sob. "But I offered to decorate it with Kuma-chan balloons!" He held up a plastic pack filled with multi-colored bits of rubber, tiny, apathetic bear faces visible on several of them. "Maybe Haruhi doesn't like this kind?!"

"She doesn't want any stupid balloons, MiLord!" the twins almost snapped, their hands roving frantically over the objects on the writing desk and tossing a few textbooks aside as if a clue would present itself.

"Haruhi wouldn't just leave in the middle of the night," Kaoru explained.

Hikaru nodded as he tore fruitlessly through the writing desk drawers. "And where did those noises come from?!"

"Haruhi…" Tamaki slid to his knees, the silken material of his blue pajama pants stretching against the carpet, fingers tearing through his bangs. "The shadow demons…" His head snapped up, features twisted in accusation, his neck swiveling around to zone in on the twins. "We have to save her from those delinquents' shadows!" He leapt to his feet with new resolve. "They're already shady enough as it is!" He pressed his hands to his cheeks in horror. "I can't imagine all the terrible things they'd do to my daughter!"

"Hey, don't talk about us like we're not here!" the Hitachiins lashed back.

"And what makes you think it's our shadows that are after her, MiLord?!" Hikaru folded his arms, expression cold.

"You're the one always following her around," Kaoru agreed.

"Trying to dress her up in perverted clothes,"

"And calling her your daughter."

"It's probably yours," they finished together.

"What?!" The color drained slowly from Tamaki's face with every accusation they leveled at him. "N— No! I wouldn't—"

"Really? That nonsense again?" Kyoya sighed from across the room where his flashlight hovered near the window. "Have you forgotten so soon that Nekozawa-senpai was playing a trick on you?"

"But Kyoya—" Tamaki started in protest.

"While you three were squabbling, I found something," he went on, fixing the light on a particular spot on the window. "Handprints."

They all immediately drew into a large huddle around the giant panes, pulling the heavy, dark velvet curtains back on both sides to get a better view. Two vague, but nearly identical handprints marked the glass as if someone had been leaning in to get a good look at the lonely scene outside of the window. Their eyes trailed over the cliffs to the murky waters below and into the still, dark corridors of the East wing, momentarily pondering what she could have been focused on. Hani squinted, centering more on the prints than the landscape, his bright brown eyes widening.

"Th— those are too big to be Haru-chan's!"

The twins and Tamaki tensed, their stomach's dropping. Mori's brow set dangerously.

"Dammit!" Tamaki brought his fist down upon the window pane, his bare shoulders visibly shaking. "We have to find Haruhi right now! Those evil shadow twins—"

The twins' expressions soured from extreme concern to extreme disdain. "Why don't we compare hands?" they suggested, tackling his wrist before he could agree.

"What?!" He pulled back, yanking away with his entire weight as they drew him closer the glass. "It can't be me! I would never kidnap my own daughter!"

"But your shadow might," Hikaru countered with gritted teeth bending his knees to keep from being dragged by Tamaki's weight.

"And if we know it's you," Kaoru grunted.

"We know who to look for!"

"You try too, Takashi," Hani prodded his cousin's hand.

"Ah." Mori nodded, eyes solemn.

Kyoya cleared his throat, temple bulging slightly. "Are we the only ones on property with hands that could match these prints?"

There was a short silence in which darkness drew over each host's countenance, their features hardening.

"Nekozawa-senpai…"

* * *

 

The journey down to the West wing where Hikaru and Kaoru had left their upperclassman bound was a harrowing one. Tamaki and the twins spat and clawed at one another one moment and embraced in mutual panic the next depending on the creakiness of the floorboards and the darkness of the halls. Hani clung relentlessly to Mori, who patted his head and smiled at him in reassurance. Tamaki attempted to take the lead more than once, but every bump in the night and trick of the narrow beam from the flashlight rendered him momentarily stricken with fear and Kyoya assumed the leadership role for the large majority of their trip.

"A—Are we close?" Tamaki stumbled over his words, his voice small, as they reached a particularly cramped corridor where intricately carved obsidian chandeliers swung overhead like stone vultures over faded crimson carpeting. His fingers dug deeply into the orange and turquoise material of the twins' pajama tees and they held onto him from both sides in return, their arms draped around the torso of his white tank top.

"It should be just around the corner," Kyoya answered, peering up ahead. It was a good thing that he'd paid attention. He could only imagine the chaos that might have ensued if Tamaki and the twins were left to navigate the estate on their own…

"Alright men!" Tamaki suddenly sprang to the head of the group, eyes set in determination. "Now that your fearless leader has led you to the battleground, we must form a game plan to win back Haruhi!" He walked backwards so that he was facing them, his arms folded smugly across his chest.

"Fearless leader?" the twins asked mockingly.

"Anyway MiLord," Hikaru yawned as they continued down the passage. "It won't be much of a battle."

Kaoru nodded bitterly. "Nekozawa-senpai is probably just waiting with Haruhi and the candle in the show room to gloat about how much he scared us."

"We can kick him around,"

"And tie him to the roof,"

"But that's about it." They shrugged together.

"I can't believe that Neko would go through all that trouble just to scare us. Even if you did vacuum Beelzenef," Hani frowned, his gaze wandering downward. "Doesn't it seem a little out of character?"

"Yeah." Tamaki's lips curled under, his fingers massaging thoughtfully at his chin. "It is strange…"

"Hey, fearless leader," Kyoya called in his usual nonchalant tone. "There's something behind you."

Tamaki yelped and dove head first back into the group, a tuft of blond slowly peeking out from over Kyoya's shoulder. "What is it?"

"The door," Kyoya responded with the faintest hint of a grin and the twins snickered, much to Tamaki's chagrin.

The aged hinges creaked and they spilled though the large, blackened wood door. The twins were the first to step out into the wider expanse, the bare ground clapping beneath their feet. The sconce lit archways added little lighting to the familiar hall, the faint orange trembling against the stone walls. They were back where they started— at the edge of the westernmost corridor, the eerie candlelight from the showroom still pulsating from its entrance.

"Alright Nekozawa-senpai!" Hikaru charged toward the show room, the rest of the club quick on his heels.

Tamaki sprinted from behind Kyoya, steps brisk. "Where's Haru—" His words died immediately in his throat. Nekozawa sat upon the black marble, his wrists bound behind a stone column, his hood slumped woefully over his eyes. Just how they'd left him.

Nekozawa glanced up fearfully, his entire form trembling. When he locked gazes with both Hitachiins and then Tamaki, he visibly relaxed.

"You came back!" He sang, tears flowing. "I assume you've seen your shadows by now." His eyes darted anxiously from face to face. "Realized I wasn't lying?" His voice finally broke. "Please don't put me on the roof! My skin burns easi—"

"So…" Hani began in a tearful voice, his eyes growing wide and then quivering. "You don't have Haru-chan?"

"Hm?" Nekozawa's brow furrowed and then arched dramatically. "I thought he was with you…"

"Nekozawa-senpai," Kyoya walked forward, the polite tone doing little to mask the rapidly worsening irritability underneath. His fingers folded tersely around the flashlight. "This stunt has gone on long enough."

"… Kyoya…" Tamaki began from his side, his voice barely a whisper.

"I realize that Tamaki damaged your property, but he's willing to pay ten times the actual cost to repair your damaged puppet," he put curtly. "You can call off whatever bizarre plan you and the security team have devised."

"Kyoya."

"My father donates quite a large sum every year to the landmark preservation group that helps to sustain this estate and—"

"Kyoya!" An agitated whisper.

"He'd be disappointed to find— what is it, Tamaki?!" he snapped around at the blond, abandoning the polite facade completely, features twisted in annoyance.

Tamaki lifted a quivering finger toward him to point downward. Brow knitted, Kyoya followed his terrified gaze, half expecting to find a black cat or some other notorious object that the Host King, the twins and Hani would no doubt project their superstitions onto for the rest of the night. Instead, he found nothing but his own feet bathed in white light from his flashlight. He grimaced.

"What the hell are you going on abo—" He huffed before trailing off, realization oozing over him in cold trickles down the back of his neck.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru choked, trembling arms clutching his brother.

"Kaoru!"

"Takashi…" Hani cried, one arm wrapped firmly over Mori's shoulders, the other holding Usa-chan tightly to his chest. "H— He…"

"He doesn't have a shadow…" Nekozawa remarked, eyes roving the ground with immense curiosity. "None of you do."

There was a brief moment of silence before the room erupted into a shrill cacophony of shrieks and incoherent babbling from all, but Mori and Kyoya— the former of which who comforted his cousin while the latter waved the flashlight repeatedly over his limbs in stunned disbelief as if his shadow would suddenly materialize from the movement.

"Calm down! Calm down!" Nekozawa warned. "I need to do something important, but you have to untie me first."

Tamaki, the twins, Mori and Hani all herded around him, their hands loosening and tearing at the duct tape as if he'd requested a bomb diffusal and there were ten seconds left til detonation. When the ravaged tape fell around Nekozawa's waist and he'd rid himself of most of the residue around his wrists, he reached under his jet black robes and fumbled for something while they all watched in anticipation. Breathing hurried, he finally yanked a smartphone from his pocket and aimed it out at all of them, his trembling fingers hovering over a button at the top.

"A photo?" Tamaki leaned into the tiny lens, amethyst eyes confused.

"What's that going to do?" the twins asked.

"Oh, nothing." Nekozawa squinted into the screen as he snapped several shots in a row. "I've just never seen black magic of this caliber before! Fufufu," he chuckled in spite of his fear. "Suoh-kun, can you back up a few ste—"

Nekozawa flinched as Tamaki's arm thrashed out to knock the phone from his hands. It smacked against the stone and clattered to the ground, the back end cracking.

"Haven't you been listening?!" Tamaki demanded, eyes maddened. "Haruhi's in trouble!"

"Right!" the twins agreed, fists clenched. "MiLord's shadow—!"

"MY shadow?!" he seethed.

"Poor Fujioka-kun," Nekozawa lowered his head as if in mourning, a fist closed over his chest. "He was always kind to the Black Magic Club..."

"WAS?!" Tamaki, the twins and Hani boomed at him.

"Don't talk about Haruhi that way!" Tamaki cried before turning to address them all. "We have to move now! Let's plan our search parties!"

"Yessir!" the twins saluted.

"Security," Mori put in and Tamaki nodded resolutely.

"Mori-senpai is right! We have to use all of our resources!" He snapped his fingers. "Nekozawa-senpai! Have the security here aid us as a third search team!"

"But you broke my phone, Suoh-kun," Nekozawa stared forlornly at the battered mix of metal and plastic. "Besides, they're usually patrolling this part of the estate around this time." He stood to peer further down the dimly lit corridors. "They should have shown up by now…"

"Probably busy getting their heads bashed in," the twins offered an explanation from behind and Tamaki grimaced in disgust. "Hikaru. Kaoru," he reprimanded. "Is this really the time to make those kinds of vulgar—" He turned half way to scowl at them only to realize that the twins were standing right in front of him, their shoulders trembling, skin ashen white.

"…jokes," Tamaki croaked, the corridor's sudden silence pressing on his ears, his limbs lead heavy as he exchanged silent gapes of horror with the twins. He felt a sudden tap on his shoulder and swallowed hard. Willing himself not to pass out, he turned from the twins to face an identical pair of faces with a very different set of emotions.

The second pair of twins stared at him for what seemed like a long while, their wicked features abnormally still, as though they were frozen in time, waiting to spring from oblivion and into terrifying reality when he least expected it. Their hands were the first to move, unclasping and releasing something that Tamaki hadn't even realized they'd been holding. A man fell face first onto the marble, limp and unconscious, a trickle of something thick and dark oozing from his head. Nausea seized Tamaki as he recognized him as the head of the estate's security.

"Who said we were joking?"


	5. Chapter Five

The cold silence of the vast corridor pressed upon them, bristling through the already raised hairs at the backs of their necks. Their eyes all lingered on the motionless man bleeding upon the dark stone, if only just to avoid what stood over him. Tamaki's features twisted in fear and Hani's arms drew so tightly around Mori's neck that he was likely cutting off his air supply. Not that Mori noticed. Kyoya stood in the same spot he had for the past few minutes, blinking twice as much as he normally did as if willing the scene to disappear. The twins pulled and squeezed so closely at one another that it wasn't clear where Hikaru's limbs ended and where Kaoru's began, their breathing coming out in quick whimpers.

The shadow twins leaned forward a centimeter, hands folded behind their backs. "Boo."

The silence exploded into screeching and howling as Tamaki and the twins dove in the opposite direction, sprinting down the dim corridor towards the unknown. The twins' counterparts erupted into raucous laughter, more malevolent than anything the Hitachiins themselves had ever produced.

"Amazing…" Nekozawa croaked, curiosity out maneuvering his sense of self preservation. Shaky fingers worked frenetically to repair his damaged phone. He'd gotten the metal back snapped on when Mori swung by him, tackling his arm and dragging him away from the demons before he could protest.

Only Kyoya remained, his feet rooted in place, eyes disbelieving. This wasn't possible. His fingers began to vibrate over the flashlight and he recognized it as the beginnings of a tremor. Taking a deep breath, he stilled himself. There was a logical explanation for this. Perhaps the Nekozawa family had backed a technology firm recently that now owed them a favor. After all, holograms were becoming increasingly popular…

"Hey Kyoya," the shadow Hikaru spoke and Kyoya drew in a sharp breath as Hikaru's voice spilled from the doppelganger's lips.

"Explain this." They both raised their arms to flourish above them and, starting at the very rear of the corridor, the light of the candelabra lined walls began to diminish flame by flame. Kyoya's eyes widened as the coming darkness raced to envelop him, his control crumbling by the second.

"Kyoya!" another voice, more frantic and concerned than mocking, coaxed him from his stupor. "Come on!" He felt a hand grasp him tightly by the wrist and let Tamaki drag him a few awkward steps before he finally turned swiftly on his heel and hurried down the corridor, the darkness fast on their heels.

"What do we do?! What do we do?!" the twins cried tearily as they all gathered together in the shadowy grand foyer of the mansion, nearly slipping and sliding along the black and white checkered floors. Tamaki collapsed onto the winding, onyx railing of the main staircase, the glowing row of candlesticks lining its iron doing little to ease his panic. The almost taunting quiet of the moldy, old lobby unsettled him and he forced himself to keep talking.

"W— We have to find Haruhi," he panted, his brow tinging with sweat, before turning to the hooded figure standing just below the lobby's black crystal chandelier. "Nekozawa-senpai! How far can the shadows travel?!"

"Hm?" Nekozawa frowned, manic eyes glued to the screen of his phone where the few photos and videos he'd managed to take scrolled under his thumb. "Well not far. They have to stay in a certain proximity from you at all times."

"Good!" Tamaki nodded. "Then you're safe to go to the nearest village downhill. When you get there, contact the police department."

"Right, Suoh-kun!" Nekozawa gave a salute and immediately headed for the door.

"Kyoya!" Tamaki turned to him. "Call your special police force in! We need as many people in the search effort as possible!"

Kyoya nodded curtly, plucking his phone from his pocket.

"Hani-senpai! Mori-senpai!" He called to the two seniors leaning against the opposite end of the staircase and their eyes hardened in ready determination. "Follow me!" He started up the stairs, aged red velvet gathering around the white of his socks. "We'll start looking upstairs first!"

"Wh-what about us, MiLord?!" the twins asked, their shoulders still trembling from their recent encounter.

Tamaki snapped around at them, his temper flaring. "You devils started this whole mess so you can keep an eye on them!" He pointed to the completely darkened corridor that they'd just escaped from. "Make sure they don't get close to Haruhi!"

'You idiot!" Hikaru nearly spat into the Host King's face. "Kaoru is the most important person to me!"

"And Hikaru to me!" Kaoru added.

"They're after us!" They wailed before huddling into a ball upon the staircase, tears brimming as they stared down the blackness consuming the corridor as if their doubles would reappear at any moment.

"They're probably watching us right now," Kaoru sobbed.

"I won't let me get you, Kaoru!" Hikaru cried, pulling him closer.

Tamaki swallowed hard, allowing his mind to be swayed from Haruhi-centric thoughts for just a moment. They had a point. He turned to survey the now dark corridor when a grunt came from Nekozawa. He turned to see his hand fixed on one handle of the arching, mahogany double doors. "S-Suoh-kun…" he started, his voice quivering. "They won't budge."

"What?!" the twins and Hani cried all at once.

"Senpai," Tamaki sighed, apparently trying to keep the panic from his tone. "You probably just didn't pull hard enough." He hurried across the checkered floors to take the iron, gargoyle plated handles in hand. "You just," He tugged. "Have to pull," He yanked again, his temples bulging. "Really hard," he nearly whimpered, crumpling against the wood.

"You have to push," Nekozawa told him reluctantly, eyes trailing the ground with second hand embarrassment.

"Move out of the way, Tama-chan," Hani gently nudged a shame faced Tamaki from the handle before pressing both hands, palms open, against one door. "You take the other, Takashi." He winked at Mori and he obliged with a nod. They both rammed against the wood with all of their strength. Nothing.

"We can't be trapped in here!" Hikaru stomped, almost angrily, to a foyer window. Flinging back the black, gosammer curtains, he kicked at the panes and immediately reeled backwards from the pain.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru rushed to his side.

"Eh," Nekozawa started sheepishly. "We had them proofed incase of burglars…"

"And they've been fastened shut with something," Kaoru groaned, pushing at the split between the two panes.

"Chains," Mori concluded as he peered, one eye closed, through the narrow slit between the two front doors.

"Y-" Hani hiccuped, drawing closer to Mori as he rose up again. "You don't think they blocked all of the exits?"

Tamaki abated the swelling hysteria in his chest with a quick, deep inhalation. "Kyoya?" He turned to his best friend with pleading eyes.

Kyoya held the phone to his ear, his expression unreadable. Finally, he lowered it to his side, his lip curling just slightly downward, his brow wrinkling as he leveled eyes with Tamaki. "Static."

A pregnant hush swept over them.

"Tr—try again—" Tamaki started.

"I tried five times," Kyoya snapped with more agitation than he intended. Removing his glasses, he dragged one hand exasperatedly down his forehead to curl at his chin.

"Paranormal Electromagnetic Interference…" Nekozawa hissed with so much excitement that it more than vaguely annoyed them. "I've never experienced it at this level before!" He pressed his palms together, massaging roughly at the back of his hands. "They must be powerful, maybe unstoppable, if they can produce something like that!" his voice chimed with a little too much elation. "I'd say we'd have a zero to five percent chance of making it out of this ali—"

"SHUT UP!" the entire room barked at him.

Derisively amused laughter drifted on the mansion's cool drafts, both echoing off of the high arched ceilings and pressing against their ears as if it were right beside them. Hani pressed his face into Mori's side as if it would shield him from the sound and Tamaki massaged at his ears, tugging at the lobes, to make sure they were still working properly.

"Hikaru!"

"Kaoru!"

Everyone jerked around to find both Hitachiins being dragged apart, their hands still clasped together in a grip that slowly deteriorated for every second that their shadows snatched them apart. The demons tugged harder, blatantly enjoying this game of twisted tug-o-war, their arms looped around each twins waist. Slicking with perspiration, their grasp began to slip until only their fingers held, clinging to one another for dear life. With one casual tug, they finally snapped apart with a joined cry. The shadows stepped backwards away from the grand staircase, their arms wreathed around the bend of Kaoru and Hikaru's shoulders, holding them in place. Both Hitachiins squirmed away from their assailants, but for all the difference their struggles were making, they might as well have been resisting cement.

"Shhh Kaoru," Shadow Hikaru hissed gently into Kaoru's ear, cool lips brushing the skin, and he recoiled as if a snake had bitten him. "I'm not going to hurt y—"

"Don't touch him!" Hikaru cried, eyes raging as he struggled to tear away once again. Shadow Kaoru just chuckled at the attempt, swiping one carefully maneuvered leg under him so that he tripped face forward only to be rescued by the shadow's arms.

Tamaki grunted, his fingers clenching into fists, the constantly magnifying terror and the desire to protect his friends fighting a fierce battle for dominance. The shadows began to draw away, out of the lobby and toward the pitch black of the dining hall. The whites of Tamaki's eyes expanded as the twins' struggling forms grew smaller, soon to vanish into darkness.

"Hikaru! Kaoru!" the cry ripped from him without his brain's permission and he charged after them into the dark, his jaw set, legs trembling as they propelled over the tile.

"Easy there, MiLord," Shadow Hikaru momentarily loosened his hold on Kaoru to raise one hand. Tamaki slowed a bit, his eyes narrowing as the skin of the demon's fingertips darkened and billowed. Before he could think to duck, a sharp blast of what he could only define as raw energy gusted forward, encasing him in a dark mist. He raised his arms to shield himself as it pressed against him, but it only grew in force, knocking him off of his feet and sending him flying backwards. He gave a pained cry as he crashed to the ground and slid across hard tile, his spine coming dangerously close to melding with the wrought iron of the staircase railing. Kyoya and Hani caught both his shoulders from behind, their arms taking the brunt of the force.

"Nekozawa-senpai," Kyoya grunted, still steadying a stunned Tamaki. "How do we fight them?"

"Fight them?" Nekozawa asked, eyes momentarily leaving the recording screen of his camera phone to glance at Kyoya as if he'd asked him to go sunbathing. "We don't." When he saw the Shadow King's increasingly agitated expression, he went on, nervously. "They have until sunrise to replace you. Between now and then, all we can do is hide." He scratched at his wig. "There's the off chance that a few of them might absorb one another, but that's only if they grow hostile and even then, it wouldn't kill them. Their energy would just be harnessed and used by the remaining shadow." An appreciative grin crossed his lips. "Shadow demons are amazing creatures really. There's a haunting study…"

As Nekozawa babbled on to Kyoya's disappointment, Mori started forward. He was faster and stronger than Tamaki. With any luck he'd be able to at least confuse them momentarily. Both shadows locked mischievous eyes on his, wicked sneers wide and daring. Mori's features set into combat mode and he started to lunge when a tiny hand grasped him tightly by the wrist.

"Takashi, wait!" Hani called, successfully deterring his cousin before stepping forward to face the shadow Hitachiins, honey colored eyes resolute.

"Erm…" he paused briefly, his finger tapping at his lips as he found the right words. "… Shadow Hika-chan, Shadow Kao-chan," he addressed them both in his usual adorable tone. "If you both take the real Hika-chan and Kao-chan's places, won't they end up turning into shadow?" he asked, recalling Nekozawa's tale and the shadow's continued allegiance to Hametsu's fiancee. The real Hitachiins whimpered in fear and he sent a sympathetic gaze their way.

The shadow twins pretended to yawn. "What's your point?"

"Well," Hani gulped before pressing on. "If you have Hika-chan and Kao-chan's feelings, would you really be okay with that?" he asked. "Even if you pretend to get along at first, it seems like you wouldn't want the other to succeed."

The shadows just stared at him, oblivious to the exertions of the squirming boys in their iron grips. The smirks slipped gradually from their countenances, their features sobering and becoming oddly vacant, like stone.

The striking mood shift shot Hani's nerves, but he tensed and pressed on regardless. "You'd probably betray each other the first chance you—"

He cut off abruptly when both shadows lashed their arms out toward him at an unnatural speed, the tips of their fingers teeming with black mist.

"Hani-senpai!" Tamaki wretched forward out of Kyoya's grip.

"Mm," Mori grunted, stepping in front of his cousin.

They watched apprehensively for a few seconds when, suddenly, without warning, both demons' arms turned inward toward one another. Kaoru's shadow turned a split second too late. With a cry from Hikaru, both he and Shadow Kaoru were swept backwards in a dark gust. They collided with the chained double doors, Shadow Kaoru's arms cradling Hikaru before they made impact, his neck snapping upward at an unnatural angle that would have killed any mere mortal. Together, they crumpled to the ground, the shadow's arms still linked around Hikaru.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru cried almost hysterically, still locked in Shadow Hikaru's grasp.

"Kaoru…" Hikaru returned, but he wasn't looking at his brother. His trembling hands hovered over the unmoving shadow, eyes brimming with tears. Finally, he snapped around to face his own shadow, expression livid. "What the hell did you do that for?!"

Shadow Hikaru rolled his eyes. "Weren't you watching, dumbass?" He smirked at himself. "He probably would have done the same. I just fired first." His eyes lowered from Hikaru's anguished features to his captive's struggles as if noticing them for the first time. He gave a closed lipped chuckle, his hold loosening from around Kaoru's shoulders and moving to snake its way over his arms and around his waist. Eyes playfully malicious, he rested his chin against Kaoru's shoulder, earning him a flinch.

"It's alright, Kaoru," he whispered into his ear before blowing gingerly against the skin. Kaoru wrenched away, his neck twisting in the opposite direction. "You don't have to worry because…"

Hikaru immediately propelled himself forward, breaking out into a frenzied run toward his shadow. He gave a cry of surprise when, instead of unleashing a blast of dark energy, the shadow tackled him by the wrist, his grip iron.

"I'm not here for you," Shadow Hikaru finished against Kaoru's ear before turning his gaze upward to stare out at the rest of their group.

Kaoru's breath hitched in his throat, his struggles calming. Hikaru's brow wrinkled. "What—?"

"Where is she?" Hikaru addressed them all, eyes roving through the darkness as if what he sought lurked there.

"She?" Nekozawa frowned, the camera phone lowering a bit. "There're no girls he—"

"I KNEW IT!" Tamaki sprung to his feet, launching one arm out to point at the shadow.

Kaoru's eyes widened slightly, his mouth going dry. He turned to his brother to see him mirroring his expression, shocked and confused. "Hikaru?"

"N-No Kaoru!" he stammered. "I don't! I couldn't—"

Kaoru just nodded weakly before lowering his gaze, rust colored bangs falling over his eyes. "It's alright." He didn't need him to explain any further. The blush on his cheeks was more than enough.

"I'm getting bored," Shadow Hikaru groaned before seizing both twins by the neck and pulling them inward towards him. They choked, their skin reddening and then draining rapidly of color.

"We don't know!" Everyone cried at once.

"We heard a sound, but when we went to check Haru-chan's room, she was gone!" Hani cried, his lips moving quickly to save the twins' air. "We haven't seen her since! I swear!"

Shadow Hikaru stared at them all intensely for a bit as if reading their minds, his expression returning to its default setting, cold and vacant. Finally, he shoved the twins away, his mouth curled into a snarl. "Dammit!" Dark bangs drooped over brooding amber as he backed away, almost floating into darkness.

"Wait!" Tamaki shot off after him, ignoring the ache in his legs and back from their earlier confrontation. If he was leaving, that meant he had somewhere better to look. And that might mean… He shook his head wildly as if to whip the harrowing thoughts away. "Don't hurt Haruhi!" he roared into the darkened dining room, though Shadow Hikaru was no longer in sight.

Disdainful laughter. "I'd worry about yourself if I were you." The voice pressed harshly upon his ears before vanishing, like the shadow, without a trace. But even moments after he'd spoken his last words, they ricocheted through Tamaki's mind, overlapping in frenzied repetition. The horrible truth that he'd been suppressing for much of the night hung over him, thick and suffocating. Could it be that he himself was the villain he'd been so fixated on protecting her from? She was his daughter after all… Of course he cared for her! He sank slowly to the ground, his arms curling around his knees. Was he hurting Haruhi right now?

Before he could go completely insane, a soft grunting noise stirred from behind him.

"MiLord," Hikaru started, his voice still trembling from the aftermath of the row with his shadow and perhaps something else. Tamaki glanced over his shoulder to see them kneeling over Shadow Kaoru's stirring form.

"He's waking up."


	6. Chapter Six

"So," Nekozawa mused from beside Kyoya as they neared the fallen shadow demon in slow, careful strides. "Fujioka-kun is a girl?"

Kyoya hesitated, arms crossed, eyes shielded, before nodding. Hiding Haruhi's gender could no longer hold top priority. Especially with Tamaki and the twins as frazzled as they were. Discretion was too much to hope for.

"Fufufu," Nekozawa chuckled in return. "I was beginning to think you were all gay."

"Hurry Mori-senpai!" Hikaru reached out toward the tallest of their group where he faced the front windows of the foyer. The velvet curtains swayed, followed by a sudden ripping noise. Mori spun abruptly from the window, lengthy crimson tassels in hand, and spilled them into the twins' frantic, beckoning fingers.

Hikaru, Kaoru, Tamaki and Hani immediately started to wring the tassels around Shadow Kaoru's wrists and ankles, tautly enough to cut off any average person's blood supply. But this wasn't your average person. A low hum seemed to extend through out the entire room like a generator of some sort. They started to glance around to check for the source when it resounded even louder from just between them. Fearful, their eyes returned to the shadow to see its shoulders vibrating, a ghostly grin playing under a curtain of russet tresses.

"Do you really think this'll hold me?"

The twins, Tamaki and Hani all tensed from their circle on the ground, their breath dying in their chests.

"It's okay," the shadow sighed, sparing one fleeting glance at Hikaru before averting his gaze. "I don't care anymore. It's obvious that Hikaru doesn't care about you anyway." He locked eyes on Kaoru, whose form slumped noticeably at the words. "I won't force him."

"That's not true, Kaoru!" Hikaru tackled his brother's shoulders and willed him to face him. Kaoru obliged, reluctantly, his hair falling over his eyes.

"That curse doesn't work right! I don't— I couldn't—" Hikaru cut off as if the words abandoned him, his entire body trembling in frustration, tears stinging at his eyes. "Haruhi…" The skin of his cheeks burned once again and Kaoru finally raised his gaze, his smile weak, but reassuring.

"It's okay, Hikaru," he said gently, his hands reaching up to cradle Hikaru's chin and guiding it upward so that his damp eyes glistened under the flashlight's glow. "We both know you like Haruhi that way. We talked about it—"

"LIKE HARUHI WHAT WAY?!" Tamaki barraged into the conversation, his fingers sinking and engraving marks into both twins' shoulders. They wrenched away.

"You just said you knew, MiLord," Kaoru raised an agitated eyebrow at him.

"B-But," Tamaki stammered, eyes growing wide and fearful as they fell on Hikaru. "I thought your shadow was just being a pervert!"

Shadow Kaoru snickered to himself. "Idiot…"

Tamaki blanched and fell back, too offended to go on, too mortified to confront the demon.

Hikaru shook his head and turned back to Kaoru, pulling him close so that they looked directly into one another's eyes. "I do like her, Kaoru, but you're my brother. No one can replace that," he seethed, his words stuffy with tears. "Something went wrong."

"Hikaru," Kaoru draped his arms over Hikaru's neck and embraced him. His brother fell tense against him only to relax a few moments later, his breathing heavy and dense. Kaoru smiled, patting his shoulders lightly. "You've just been thinking about Haruhi a lot lately. That's probably why your shadow focused on her."

"Maybe." Hikaru sniffed, nodding as if trying to convince himself. "I love you, Kaoru." He gave him a fierce squeeze.

"I love you too."

Hikaru finally pulled away, his eyes trailing the veins of his balled up fists against his knees. "But that means Haruhi…"

"We'll find her, Hika-chan," Hani and Mori reached down to gather him from the ground, wiping at his tear streaked cheeks. Tamaki rose as well with Kyoya's support, his limbs still shaky at Hikaru's revelation. Kaoru started to push himself from the tiles as well when he caught his shadow staring at him. It was chilling— and a bit confusing— being faced with a split image of himself that wasn't his brother.

"Nice save." The shadow applauded him, before giving him a sympathetic grin. "But we both know the truth."

Kaoru's breath caught and swelled in his throat, palms growing clammy with anxiety. Part of him wanted to tell the demon to stuff it and the other side desperately yearned to know what it— a being supposedly infused with every memory and every emotion he'd ever had— had to say. Shadow Kaoru smirked as if he could sense his inner battle, but the cadence of his words were laced with all of the resentment and pain that Kaoru had never dared to entertain, even in his darkest thoughts.

"He doesn't need you anymore."

"Kao-chan." He felt a hand on his shoulder and the skin there tingled, slowly willing him out of his head and away from his shadow. He glanced up to see Hani peering down at him in concern. "Are you alright?"

"Y-Yeah, fine, Hani-senpai," he mumbled, sinking back into his thoughts. He would have at least expected Hikaru to deny a claim that absurd… His eyes stung. Maybe he didn't because there was some truth to it? Come to think of it, no one had responded.

"So what are we going to do with him?" Nekozawa inquired, finally deciding to move in on the shadow when it showed no intention to attack. "He would make the perfect study subject for the Black Magic Club! Fufufu…" He leaned over him, running the rust colored hair through his hands and poking at various body parts. Shadow Kaoru's eyes followed him in vague amusement all the while. He finally pried at the demon's cheek and it snapped its teeth at him, sending Nekozawa stumbling backwards into a nearby bookcase.

Kyoya sighed, his arms folded, before averting his spectacled stare to the shadow. "You said you didn't care anymore." He reached up to ease his glasses further up the bridge of his nose. "So what are you going to do now?"

Shadow Kaoru shrugged. "I could help."

"What?!" Hikaru and Kaoru bellowed, eyes narrowing.

"Why should we trust you?! " Tamaki demanded, stepping forward. "How do we know you won't help the others?!"

Kyoya lifted a hand to signal them all to settle down. "How?"

The shadow smiled at Tamaki. "I have no allegiance to the others." His eyes traveled to Hikaru who tensed. "I don't want to hurt Hikaru and I don't want his bastard of a shadow to win," he concluded, twisting his injured neck. "As for 'how'," He locked eyes with Kyoya, peering directly through the glasses as if seeing what truly lurked behind them. Kyoya swallowed, unsettled, but he didn't let on. "I can help you destroy them."

They all leaned inward, ears perking up.

"You can use the candle," Shadow Kaoru divulged. "The one you lit earlier."

"For what?" Hani asked.

"How does it work?" the twins queried together.

Shadow Kaoru blinked at them, rounding the group with his eyes before shrugging again. "I'm not sure."

They all groaned, their shoulders visibly slumping.

"How can we trust you if you can't tell us how?" Kyoya asked, the edge in his tone betraying frustration and perhaps something else. He'd done an impeccable job that night of keeping hysteria at bay, but the mechanisms that typically fastened his sanity in place were steadily unraveling.

Shadow Kaoru's lip curved slightly up, eyes wicked. "You're out of your element, Kyoya-senpai," the honorfic sounded less respectful and more mocking. "You could be avoiding danger," He leaned his head to one side. "Or," He tilted the opposite way. "You could be passing on the only piece of advise that's going to save you tonight."

Kyoya didn't respond and silent panic fell over the group. If just one of their demons had stumped the Shadow King, how could they hope to survive?!

"Besides," Kaoru went on. "I'd hate to be without me when I have to face you."

They all blanched at the idea of a Kyoya shadow demon— Kyoya included.

"Fufufu…"

Tamaki, the twins and Hani shrieked and nearly skyrocketed toward the ceiling at the low sound. Nekozawa had returned from his cowering spot under the bookcase, an eerie grin peeking out from underneath his hood. "It is a common rule in ancient, dark lore that the object which summoned the demon can return it to its crypt again."

Kyoya gave a frustrated huff. "Fine," he concluded, shining his flashlight back toward the pitch black entryway to the West wing's corridor. He figured it better to keep an eye on their enemies than to have them roaming the dark mansion, their whereabouts unknown. "Let's head back. It's only a few minutes from here."

Mori and Hani undid the tassels around Shadow Kaoru's ankles and he let them lift him from the ground and guide him back toward the corridors he and Shadow Hikaru had blacked out. Hikaru and Kaoru kept their distance from him for the entirety of the trip, though they seemed more divided from one another as well. Tamaki was uncharacteristically quiet, his feet moving, but his eyes dazed and distressed as if he were trapped in a nightmare with Haruhi at the center. Kyoya led the way, the beam of his flashlight spilling out into the corridor, his brow set in deep thought. The only other light came from flashes of Nekozawa's beaten up smartphone as he huddled around Shadow Kaoru, capturing his likeness at every angle.

"I'll get it!" Hikaru insisted upon reaching the room, jetting past Kyoya with Kaoru fast on his heels.

"You stay out here and be lookout, Neko-kun!" Hani warned before guiding Shadow Kaoru into the room, Mori right behind him. Nekozawa obliged, apparently fearful of creating a shadow of his own. Kyoya handed him his flashlight so that his eyes could actually penetrate the dark corridors and he reluctantly took it before ducking behind the stone column he'd been tied to.

"Tamaki," Kyoya called, snapping the blond out of his daze. Ghosts of distressed Haruhi's momentarily vanished from Tamaki's inner mind in wisps and he nodded before following Kyoya into the dimly lit chamber.

"Wh- what happened in here?" Kaoru frowned as they walked further into the showroom. Rather than facing the neat, impeccably kept table displays and roped off artifacts they'd encountered upon their earlier visit, the room looked as if a cyclone had hit. Books and scriptures had been ripped from the gothic shelves lining the right wall of the chamber, many of their pages torn. A mess of runes, black glass, candelabras, melted wax and other relics scattered over the ground. Several of the stanchion ropes had been sliced or knocked on their sides. The cursed candle itself, however, still remained in pristine condition atop the fireplace mantle, the wax completely blackened now.

"Good thing Neko-kun can't come in," Hani shot a sympathetic gaze toward the chamber's entrance. "He'd be devastated."

"So one of…" Tamaki hesitated as he surveyed the chaotic room. "… them was here."

"Yeah, but why didn't they take this?" Hikaru approached the fireplace mantle, careful to avoid Hametsu's eerie gaze, and removed the burning candle from its holder. "If it can really destroy them, wouldn't they want to make sure we couldn't find it?"

"Look," Mori replied, tilting his head toward Shadow Kaoru.

The demon had reeled backwards in he and Hani's grasp, his neck twisted away from the candlelight, eyes narrowed as if in pain.

"He doesn't want to move toward the light," Hikaru concluded, staring down to peer at the flame as it licked wildly toward the shadow as if drawn to it.

Kaoru observed its behavior as well and his eyes widened suddenly, an idea occurring to him. Could it be that easy? No… His gaze traveled up to find his brother still staring apprehensively at the flame. But still, he had to try. For Hikaru.

"Hikaru," he started innocently, palm open. "Can I see it?"

"Huh?" Hikaru's brow furrowed before passing the candle to his brother. "Uh… sure, Kaoru."

Upon seizing the candle, Kaoru darted away from Hikaru, ignoring the frenzied calls behind him. He raced past the devastated display tables and skipped over a pile of yellowed skulls to shove in between Hani and Mori and plant the candle, flame first, against his shadow's forehead.

The demon went rigid immediately, letting out an anguished cry that reached the high ceilings of the chamber and flooded the corridor beyond. Its eyes glowed amber as if set aflame from within, knees buckling. A wave of terror and great relief in equal parts washed over Kaoru as it collapsed to the stone ground, a billow of black mist roiling about his forehead where the flame had touched. It tore effortlessly through the velvet tassels, but made no effort to rise, palms pressing flat on the ground, its back arching as if attempting to resist an incredible weight. The shadow peered up from its affliction, teary eyes pleading and fixed on something just over Kaoru's shoulder.

"Hikaru," it begged and Kaoru couldn't differentiate the voice from his own. "Please, help me."

Kaoru swallowed hard. "Hikaru—"

"Kaoru!" Hikaru flew out from behind him, racing for the shadow and Mori caught him by the back of his pajama top. He snapped up to glare at Mori, who just shook his head. The reality of the matter settled in and his features softened, but the tremor in his shoulders did not assuage. He shut his eyes tightly. This was not his brother hurt and writhing helplessly on the ground while his friends looked on apathetically. He only looked just like him. And sounded just like him. He even probably experienced the same emotions, but… It's not Kaoru, he recited to himself. It's not Kaoru. It's not—

"Hikaru," the weak, cracking voice of his brother invaded his thoughts and pulled him back to the dark, cluttered chamber where Kaoru squirmed at his feet.

"I don't want to die alone." The shadow stared at him, its eyes quivering with fear, before reaching out. "Please hold my hand."

As Hikaru stood unmoving, his gaze frozen on the shadow's open hand, he found himself overwhelmed with debilitating guilt. Kaoru's shadow would have never ended up this way if his own shadow hadn't abandoned him. And now Kaoru himself had turned on him after he offered to help. He must have been hurt and terrified. And Kaoru didn't deserve that. This one kindness was the least he could do now to ease his pain.

"Kaoru," he breathed softly as he reached down to take the shadow's hand. Even before the chorus of protests rose around him, he knew he had made a mistake. Something automatically switched in the shadow's gaze, that old, predatory darkness reentering. Before Hikaru could wrench away, it jerked him forward in a vice like grip and pressed a cold kiss against his open mouth, its teeth pressing hungrily into the skin of his lower lip.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru started forward, when his heart thudded harshly in his chest and then halted momentarily as if skipping a beat. The candle falling from his grasp, he clutched at the area between his breastbone and reeled over the nearest display table, gripping the dark wooden edge.

"Kaoru!" Tamaki started toward him.

"Kao-chan!"

The shadow's grip finally loosened and Hikaru stumbled backwards, his own efforts from pulling away so desperately sending him toppling over a pile of ravaged books.

Familiar low laughter echoed across the chamber, replacing the anguished screams from just moments ago, the tone hardly recognizable as the youngest Hitachiin's.

Mori and Hani rounded on the demon, eyes narrowed, while Tamaki questioned a stunned Kaoru about his sudden symptoms, his features wracked with concern. Kyoya studied Hikaru, who still sat, stunned and clutching his mouth, on the floor.

"Hey," Shadow Kaoru waved his hands in jest as he stood up, running his hands over his orange tee. "I was just playing around! I'm a good actor, right?" He winked.

Kyoya gave a deep sigh, his hands betraying a slight tremor as they repositioned his glasses for the hundredth time. "So the candle can't actually kill you."

"Not if you use it like that," the shadow admitted, flashing a grin at Kaoru. "It just burns a little. It's like…" he paused and they could see him scouring through Kaoru's memories. "Pepper spray. Painful as hell, but not enough to kill me."

"But what did you do to Kaoru?!" Tamaki whined tearfully, still clutching the younger twin's shoulders despite Kaoru's constant assurances that he was fine.

"Did you mark Hika-chan?!" Hani asked fearfully.

"Of course not," Shadow Kaoru frowned, arms crossed. "The mark is much more complex than a single kiss. Besides," He lowered his gaze. "I told you, I won't hurt Hikaru."

"Kaoru!" Hikaru had finally snapped out of his stupor and sprinted toward his brother at full speed. Shoving Tamaki to the side, he embraced him tightly. "Kaoru." He forced through tears. "I didn't know. He looked just like you and—"

"It's okay, Hikaru," Kaoru rested his chin on Hikaru's shoulder, but his gaze once again wandered to the cold stare of the demon.

"He just pities you. Us," the shadow told him, the former resentment returning to his features.

Kaoru blinked, eyes widening by a fraction.

"Because while he's developed feelings for Haruhi, you're still trailing behind him like a rejected puppy," Shadow Kaoru frowned. "You make him feel guilty for being normal."

That's not true!" Kaoru snapped a bit too loudly. "I…" he started, eyes sinking to the fibers of Hikaru's pale blue pajama top. "I've given Hikaru space." Was he really making him say all this aloud? "He knows that I'm okay with it. He knows—"

"That you've spent your entire life following him around? Mirroring his personality to the point that nearly everyone thinks you're just as cruel as he is?" The shadow shook his head sadly. "No one knows who you really are, Kaoru. Or if there's even a real you."

Kaoru's fingers seized into fists, his breathing shallow. It was true. He had spent the entirety of his life following his older twin's lead. It was just how things had always been. They rarely fought or disagreed on anything. Because it was about Hikaru. It was always what Hikaru wanted to do. And soon, what Hikaru wanted to do became what he wanted to do too. How would he even define himself? But then… A faint flicker of hope sparked in his eyes. "Haruhi said I wasn't as—"

"Wasn't as," Shadow Kaoru let the words roll from his tongue distastefully. "Not as mean. Not as aggressive. Not as blunt," he finished. "Are any of those actual traits describing you?"

Kaoru didn't respond, his mouth going dry.

"Don't you get it, Kaoru?" The demon gazed down, the pity in its phosphorescent eyes for Kaoru, for them both, unbearable. "He's not hanging on to you because he can't let go. He's hanging on because he knows if he does, you'll be nothing without him."

"N…" the sound barely made it past Kaoru's tongue before his features crumbled, lips trembling violently, eyes flooding with tears. "That's not… Hikaru…," he cried nonsensically, perhaps begging his brother to contest its words. Why hadn't he said anything? Why hadn't any of them said anything? He started backwards, shoving Hikaru away roughly, eyes wide and trembling. So they knew. They all knew it was true this entire time. He stumbled further away from their pitiable expressions all reading 'So he finally knows. Yes, he finally gets it' and eventually gave an anguished cry before sinking to his knees, hands cradling his face and smothering sobs.

"Kaoru!"

"Kao-chan!"

Their voices filled his ears and it was as if everything had glided back into focus, as if he'd been listening to white noise up until that point. They gathered all around him, Hikaru seizing his shoulders and Tamaki placing a hand across his forehead, likely to determine his temperature.

"Kao-chan," Hani blinked tears away. "What happened?!"

"Mm," Mori nodded in concern.

"Y-You didn't…" he stammered, eyes rising fearfully to meet with his shadow's. A curious grin curved over its wicked lips, arched brows expectant. Kaoru blanched in realization. He'd wondered why he'd forced him to speak aloud. He hadn't. The conversation had happened in their heads.

"Kaoru." Hikaru slanted his shoulders to face him, so much worry in his eyes that Kaoru could burst.

"Hikaru…" He couldn't divulge the troubling words that the shadow had told him, so he did the only thing that felt right. Sobbing, he flung his arms around Hikaru's neck, feeling every bit the parasite that the demon had accused him of being.

The rest of their group regarded them with fond endearment save for Kyoya whose discerning eyes had locked onto Kaoru's shadow.

"Something wrong, Kyoya-senpai?" it asked, eyebrow raised.

After a few seconds, the Shadow King shook his head, "Nothing." He moved toward the door, but not before kneeling down to scoop the abandoned candle from the ground. Amazingly, it hadn't stopped burning or caught fire to the grit or anything else. He wiped the spot that it had been pressed against. The stone wasn't even singed or warm.

"It won't burn anything," Shadow Kaoru divulged. "You can wrap it in something to keep from cursing your friend." He nodded outside of the door where Nekozawa hid.

Kyoya nodded slowly, still staring at the candle, before plucking a black velvet pouch from the ground. Emptying out a set of gemstone runes, he dropped the black candle inside and placed it into his pants pocket, eying the spot several times before he was thoroughly convinced it wouldn't burn through.

"Alright," Tamaki marched toward the chamber exit, strides confident and sure, before turning to face them. "Now that I've seen these creatures in action, I've brilliantly deduced that our own shadow's interaction with our respective important persons causes us pain somehow!" he counseled, finger raised.

"I think we all 'deduced' that, MiLord," Hikaru frowned from where he comforted his brother.

Tamaki ignored him. "That means, of course," he began. "THAT HARUHI IS OKAY!" he gushed, tears suddenly streaming down his cheeks with much abandon. "We have to find her before anything terrible happens! Mori-senpai! Hani-senpai!" he called and they appeared before him, ready for duty. "Tie the demon back up!"

Hani and Mori nodded, grabbing the duct tape the twins had used on Nekozawa and commencing to apply the entire roll to the shadow's arms.

"Make sure he doesn't get too close to Hikaru," Kyoya whispered to them both, fingers lingering over his spectacles. "Or Kaoru."

Hikaru rose up, draping Kaoru's arm over his shoulder to assist him in standing.

"Alright men!" Tamaki gave them all a salute before taking a step outside. "Let's GYAAAAAH!"

A flash of gold, white and blue flew into him and he promptly disappeared from sight.

"MiLord!" the twins cried out, racing outside into the corridor, Kyoya fast on their heels.

"Tama-chan!" Hani followed, practically dragging Shadow Kaoru along, Mori quick behind them.

"Suoh-kun!" Nekozawa whined, one hand balled up at his cheek, the other clutching the flashlight. It darted all over the place, to the ceiling, to the stone walls, anywhere but the source of the rustling and grunting further down the hall. "I can't watch!"

Kyoya promptly snatched the stick from his senior and raised it over head to cover as much ground as possible. They all gasped when it found him.

Or rather them.

Two tall blonds in matching white tank tops and blue pajama slacks tumbled over the stone, straddling one another for moments before the other achieved the upper hand. Finally, one of them wrenched away and they both stood in the same pose, feet planted a foot apart, hands at their sides, fists clenched, glares locked. They both panted, out of breath, both sets of violet eyes daring, but terrified. It was as if a mirror had materialized in the corridor. But who was it reflecting?

"M-MiLord?" the twins asked fearfully.

Kyoya's fingers still trained on his glasses, eyes darting back and forth between the two.

"Takashi…" Hani stepped backward, biting his lip. "Which is which?"


	7. Chapter Seven

Meanwhile...

Haruhi woke to soft, unintelligible murmuring in the distance, her sight muddied with blurs of black, grey orange and yellow. Candlelight, she realized. The room suddenly sharpened into focus and her heart thudded to a brief halt. It was round and entirely composed of stacked grey stones from wall to wall. The only decorations presented themselves in wrought iron candelabras with spiraling feet, all flickering with flame. And chains. Lots of chains. They littered the stone walls and hung heavily down to spill shackles onto the ground. Was this some sort of dungeon? Her heart quickened from skipping beats to thudding twice as harshly against her sky blue t-shirt. What was she doing here?

She roved through her most recent memories. Dinner at the infamous Nekozawa historical estate. The show room display. The tale of the black candle. Her eyes widened as the rest of the night unwound in her mind without any further effort, panic quickly building in its wake. But that couldn't have been what actually happened. Surely she'd been dreaming. Or drugged. She lifted a hand to pinch herself only to find her wrist adorned with an iron clasp. She glanced at the other wrist to find a matching shackle before following them both with her eyes, up the chain and to the stone wall where they fastened in tight. Her feet made an awkward, unconscious movement forward and she stumbled from whatever she'd been sitting on, instinctively wrestling away from the chains. The resistance did little save for leaving tiny lines engraved upon her wrists. She was trapped alone. In a dungeon. On the Nekozawa estate. With an evil doppelgänger of the Shadow King lurking somewhere in the backdrop. Who possibly meant to "mark" her. Whatever that meant.

The demon's eyes flashed across her memory again and her breathing shallowed, the panic rising to a swelling point from her stomach to her chest and then her throat. Unable to conceal it any longer, she let it tear out, shrill and trembling, but loudly enough so that her friends or the estate security might hear. "HEL—" she cried and a hand immediately pressed over her lips, the skin ice cold.

"Shhhh," a voice whispered in her ear and her eyes grew large at the familiar tone.

"Hani-senpai!" She whirled around, the chain pulled taut from the wall, to see the adorable senior standing before her in his pink Usa-chan one piece, a bunny ear hood extending from the back. He slowly lowered his hand back down to his side.

"Did that…" She wasn't sure what to call the thing masquerading as Kyoya. "Did it bring you here t…" She trailed off when she noticed something odd in his countenance. All the features were in place, the color right, but it contained the odd singularity of a CGI model. Something almost mirroring life, but not quite getting it right. There was a deadness underneath those human like features.

Hani stared at her as if daring her to voice the unhinging thoughts, his eyes lacking all of their usual warmth. She drew a sharp breath and his lip crooked upward slightly, vacant honey eyes brightening wickedly. Was he feeding from her fear?

"Hani-senpai." Another voice interrupted and they both turned to a large iron door to their right. The entrance to the chamber. Had it been open all along? Is that where the murmuring had come from? "I didn't give you permission to be here."

"Kyoya-senpai," she breathed, for lack of a better term. Why were he and Hani-senpai together? And was it the real Hani-senpai? Not likely, she thought, a sick feeling growing in the pit of her stomach.

"Don't tell me what to do, Kyoya," Hani spoke coldly, reminiscent of the few rare times she'd come face to face with his dual personality.

Shadow Kyoya entered the room further, finally stepping into the flickering candlelight and Haruhi felt the hairs prickle at the back of her neck, the panic rearing its ugly head again. She unconsciously yanked at her chains once more, but they did nothing but greet her ears with a barrage of creaks and clangs. His gaze fortunately seemed to be focused on Hani as he peered down through the glasses.

"If you want to return to the shadow realm, by all means, disregard my orders, Hani-senpai." He grinned, the expression not quite in line with the venom in his words. "But I think you'll find things go much more smoothly if you cooperate. Do we still have a deal?"

Shadow Hani considered him for a few seconds before finally nodding despite his defiant expression. He tucked a hand in the pocket of his onsie and pulled out a folded sheet of paper with frayed edges. "Found it in the show room."

"And everything else?"

"It's in there." Hani tilted his head toward the outside room before crossing his arms and staring expectantly up at Kyoya. "So?"

"Not yet," Kyoya responded blankly, eyes focused on the sheet of paper as he unfurled it, layer by layer. "Have you run into any trouble from the others?"

"Nah," Hani grumbled. "This body is too small to spot easily, but I saw that idiot blond wandering around near the show room before I left."

A slow smile slithered over Kyoya's features as he observed the scroll, aged black lines, numbers and words inscribed over the paper. "If he's anything like Tamaki, he's probably only just realized that Haruhi's not with the rest of them." Upon saying her name, his gaze fixed onto her for the first time, eyes steely beneath the glass. She tugged once again albeit half heartedly.

"I have another assignment for you," he told Hani, but his gaze remained fixed on her. "Wait for me in the main room."

Hani stood rooted in place for a few moments, blatantly reluctant to take his orders, before finally spinning on his heel and heading toward the heavy iron door. With one last narrowed glance at Kyoya and then Haruhi, he disappeared into the orange lit chamber beyond. Haruhi bit her lip. Another assignment? Just what exactly was he planning? And how had he gotten Hani-senpai's shadow to work for him? In demon form, the title of Shadow King had never been more fitting.

He started toward her and she immediately stepped backwards as far as the chains would allow, the metal pressing into the skin of her wrists. Did he mean to mark her? Or was he plotting something else? Could she appeal to his sympathies? Did he have any? "Kyoya-senpai," she started, swallowing down the panic in one large gulp. "I don't under—"

He reached out to press one cool fingertip against her lips. "Relax," he advised calmly. "I'm not going to hurt you."

She silenced, her breathing slowing slightly. Had it been his will or her own?

"Now sit down." He motioned toward the wall and she realized that she'd come to upon a crimson red, lavender rose embroidered chaise lounge chair. It didn't match the rest of the "dungeon" and she concluded that he'd placed it there for her comfort.

"And stop resisting," he continued, a hint of a frown on his lips. "That iron has sharp edges and if you aren't careful, you'll hurt yourself."

Blinking dumbly she stared down at the sofa and then back up at the shadow demon. Was he really counseling her on shackle safety?

He responded with a smirk, arms crossed. "He doesn't say, but he's really quite fond of you."

"Kyoya-senpai…" She frowned, reluctantly taking a seat upon the lounge, knees pressed together, shackled hands folded. She knew that Kyoya kept his feelings securely bolted away from prying eyes and that she mattered to him on some level, but to this extent… She leaned forward. "Am I really his most important person? I'm not… I would think—"

"Oh, you're definitely essential to me, Haruhi," Kyoya cut in before she could finish her thought process. "And he's incredibly repressed." He repositioned his glasses. "Of course, once the game is over and I win, that won't be a problem." He grinned, spectacles flashing at her. "And I'll drop that hefty debt he's stacked against you as well."

Haruhi raised an eyebrow. "Game?" Why did he call it a game? She knew that Kyoya often viewed quite a few of the Host Club's activities and pursuits as games- even though, for the large majority of the time, the rest of them had no idea that they were playing. His shadow had apparently taken on the same quirk, but what could be so tantalizing about this "game" when he supposedly already had the winning piece? "If I really am your most important person, why don't you just m…" She trailed off, realizing in two parts that one, she was suggesting that he "mark" her and two, she didn't even remotely understand what the "mark" was in the first place. She folded her lips inward as if to stop herself from speaking when she realized that he was leaning directly over her, a curious glint in his eyes.

"Would you like me to?" he asked softly, but the words seemed to suffocate her as they curled and billowed against her ears, filling the space like smoke.

"No," she responded in a barely audible whisper and he stood again.

"I don't scheme and tell, Haruhi." He eyed the frayed edged paper one last time before folding it into a small rectangle and placing it in the pocket of his grey pants. A knowing smile curved over his lips as he started back toward the door. "Let's just say, I have something that quite a few parties want and that has its merits."

She lowered her gaze in thought. What could that something be? she pondered, feeling as if the answer was right under her nose. Had he somehow discovered a way to humanize the shadows without needing their most important person? Her heart thudded harshly. Or worse, did he mean to hurt Tamaki and the others in some way? But then, regardless of all the other evil he was plotting, his first and foremost concern would be survival, right? If he had the key to his survival then why wouldn't he use it? Unless—

Her thoughts promptly halted when something darkened the doorway to her right just before Kyoya could reach it. She glanced up, eyes wide, to see a familiar face standing in the threshold.

Kyoya's shadow stopped to fold one arm, the other rising to straighten his glasses. "Hikaru," he spoke calmly, almost as if he'd been expecting him.

"Hikaru?!" Haruhi called, half hoping he was the real thing, half knowing the truth.

The demon's amber gaze flickered oddly upon catching her eyes, a predatory glint there. "Haruhi."


	8. Chapter Eight

Meanwhile...

"Where's Haruhi?!" both blonds demanded fiercely, lurching forward with clenched fists as if they would break out into a run and seize one another at any moment, their violet eyes wild. The rest of them watched fearfully, searching for any subtle deviation in character from either of the doubles, but none presented itself. The demon had emulated Tamaki completely.

"I don't know!" they both responded in a unison the Hitachiins might envy before gasping, their eyes bewildered at the level of mockery.

"Stop doing that! I mean it! Don't hurt her!" They circled one another, arms darting about in random, haphazard motions designed to throw the other off, but they just appeared as an elaborate synchronized routine.

"Smart move," Shadow Kaoru commented from between Mori and Hani, his lips curving into a curious grin. "I'm surprised he could pull it off as dimwitted as your friend is."

"Shut up!" Hikaru hissed, hands still massaging posessively at Kaoru's shoulders, and the shadow smiled lovingly back at him as if it were humoring a petulant child. Hikaru shook his head and turned back to the dueling Tamakis. "How in the hell are we supposed to tell the difference?"

"What's something only MiLord would know?" Kaoru asked, eyes lowering in deep thought.

"T-Tama-chan!" Hani stammered and both Tamakis whipped their heads in his direction.

"Hani-senpai?" they asked together, their expressions a blend of fear and concern, not a hint of malice.

"What's your favorite type of cake?" Hani asked, light brown eyes peering vigilantly back and forth between the two.

"Opera cake!" they both responded without missing a beat, fists raised. Gasping, they snapped around to face one another, features paling.

"M-MiLord!" the twins stepped forward. "What kind of pepper did we put in your commoner's coffee last week?"

"Habanero," they both answered with only a slight edge of annoyance, too exhausted to spare any excess frustration at the memory of the twins' prank.

"Fufufu," Nekozawa's hooded countenance peeked out from behind his camera phone where a tiny red recording beam flashed. "Remember, the shadows have all of your interests and memories. They can even mimic emotions," he squealed. "He knows exactly how Suoh-kun would act in this situation."

"H-Huh?!" the blonds cried together, eyes fearful. "No!" They turned to face their friends, features desperate, arms gesturing wildly. "It's me! I swear!"

The group remained silent as they helplessly surveyed the twin Tamakis. Kyoya's features hardened, the tremor in his flashlight hand returning. They couldn't leave Tamaki to fend for himself. Buddha knows that wouldn't end well. But then, they certainly couldn't trust traveling with his shadow. Shadow Kaoru was one demon too many to begin with. And then, there was still Haruhi to attend to. His inner monologue trailed off, his eyes widening beneath the spectacles. Haruhi.

"Tamaki," Kyoya started calmly. "What's Haruhi's last name?"

"Fujioka," they both answered as if he'd asked which planet they lived on.

"And what does she hope to study?"

"Law!"

"Kyoya-senpai…" the twins sighed exasperatedly at the futile attempts.

"What's her favorite sashimi?" he asked, the pace of his questions growing quicker and quicker.

"Ootoro!"

"And her favorite color?"

"Red!"

"And why is she important to you?"

"Because I love her!"

"Because she's my daughter!"

Both blonds turned to examine the other, the one who'd spoke first still in the ardous throes of a love confession, fists raised and clenched, eyes filled with passion. The other blushed fervently.

"L-Love?" the latter stammered, taking a few steps back. "Y-You mean," He raised a trembling finger to point at the other. "As a father, right?!"

"MiLord!" Hikaru and Kaoru rushed forward with extended arms and streaming tears to embrace the blushing Tamaki to their left.

"It's you!" Kaoru gushed, squeezing the blond around the neck.

"We knew we could count on your stupidity!" Hikaru grasped the two until all three of their cheeks pressed together in a triple bear hug.

""Wh-what?!" Tamaki cried from within the hug, too confused to be truly offended.

"Yaaaaay! Tama-chan!" Hani sprung forward to join the group hug, leaving Mori to monitor Kaoru's shadow.

"Nice work, Kyoya-senpai," it commended, an edge of derision in its tone.

"You might have the same interests and memories, but you don't seem to harbor the same delusions," Kyoya said, his steely gaze focused on the shadow Tamaki. "That's why you were able to manipulate Kaoru so easily."

Shadow Kaoru's expression solemned, the life bleeding from his features. "Genius," he complimented with an edge of sarcasm before smirking, the amber of his eyes flashing phosphorescent. "I can only imagine what your shadow's like."

Kyoya didn't respond, the familiar sensation of dread soaking into him that materialized every time he dared to court the subject. Luckily, he didn't have to dwell on it much longer. Tamaki's shadow's farce had evaporated and with it, the need for his mask. They all watched in horror as the fear, confusion and anything remotely innocent drained from the blond's features leaving nothing, but cruel, narrowed violet eyes, hard-edged features and a derisive sneer.

Tamaki's breath caught in his throat, his own features paling. For a second, he thought he might hurl up that night's dinner. His reflection had never greeted him so maliciously before.

"WAAAAH!" Hani cried out. "Tama-chan is scary!"

The rest gulped in agreement. Seeing Hikaru and Kaoru's shadow forms had been one thing, but the thought of irreparable evil and Tamaki's bright eyed naivety just didn't mix. The image jarred and disquieted them like white roses drenched in blood. Their skin prickled when a taunting moan echoed across the dark corridor, Tamaki's soft, smooth timbre twisting into something perverse as it oozed from the demon's lips.

"You ruined it, Kyo-kun." The shadow pouted, arms crossed. Its eyes hardened immediately, all of the vibrance they were accustomed to seeing there awash. It glanced about with vacant features, exploring the spots in between them and roving the dark crevices of the corridor. "She's not even here, is she?"

The real Tamaki seized up, muscles tight. Now was the defining moment. He couldn't just let himself escape as he had with Hikaru's shadow. If they let him go and he hurt Haruhi, he'd never be able to forgive himself. Taking a deep breath, his shoulders sank and evened out, features calming. Certainly, he could talk some sense into himself. After all, if what Nekozawa said was true, Haruhi was like a daughter to this creature as well!

"You can't do anything to hurt Haruhi!" He stepped forward away from his friends, despite the twins' and Hani's grasping hands. "You have to protect her!" He launched an arm out to point at him, eyes intense. "It's your responsibility as her father!"

His shadow stared at him for a short while through those vacant eyes before rearing his head back and erupting into cold laughter, a sound completely foreign to Tamaki.

"Eh- Ehm…" he stammered, attempting to keep up a brave front. "What's so funny?" His features reddened. "Answer me!"

The shadow's laughter suddenly ceased abruptly as if it had never existed at all, not even an echo remaining. Blinking, it lowered its gaze to face Tamaki with immense curiosity.

"Just how stupid are you?" it asked honestly and Tamaki's stance visibly froze, a protest rising and then dying in his throat. The shadow went on. "I don't want to be Haruhi's father," it grinned mockingly, placing a strange emphasis on the word' father'.

The whites of Tamaki's eyes enlarged with hope. "You don't?"

"That's not a good thing, MiLord," Hikaru snapped through gritted teeth, blatantly agitated with Tamaki's obliviousness.

"Of course not." The demon simpered as he took slow strides toward himself, eyes wickedly amused. "And let me let you in on a little secret."

Tamaki found himself in the odd position of wanting to turn from what stood before him, but being too enraptured by it to do so. His friends and the looming corridor around him seemed to sink and disintegrate into the backdrop and he couldn't help but wonder if some force outside of him compelled him to remain rooted in place. But then, if his shadow was tormenting him then it wasn't tormenting Haruhi. And that was something.

The demon stopped just before him, their eyes mere centimeters apart. It caught him gently by the cheek and leaned forward to whisper into his ear. Tamaki swallowed hard. It wasn't breathing.

"Neither do you."

"Eh?" Tamaki's eyes ballooned. Of course he thought of himself as Haruhi's father! For what other reason could he attribute his draw to her? How cute he thought she was? And his desire to protect her? Who else, but a daughter could inspire such devotion? The idea that he could be anything but fatherly toward her was ridiculous. Laughable even. So then, why wasn't he laughing?

The demon just smiled against his ear, its lips ice cold. "You think of her sometimes," it began. "In the middle of the night when the world is quiet and your usual antics and crowds of admirers aren't around to distract you."

Tamaki tensed, his mind going blank, a creeping numbness spreading over him.

"What kind of thoughts play at the edges of your mind?" the demon asked softly. "The forbidden thoughts. The ones you try so hard not to let in?"

"N-No…" Tamaki stuttered, his fingers quivering as he raised a hand to his head. "That's just… Sometimes I have too much commoner's coffee before I go to bed and it causes—"

"You're lying." The demon frowned and pulled back so that he faced Tamaki again. "No honorable father would ever think about his daughter that way." It pressed its cold palms into both the boy's cheeks and willed him to face him. "You want to protect her from me."

Tamaki swallowed hard, his breathing coming out in shallow gasps, eyes glazing with tears.

"But who's going to protect her from you?"

A soft whimper escaped the Host King's throat and he fell to his knees, shoulders slumped and defeated, bangs curtaining his face.

"MiLord!" The twins raced to his side, followed closely by Hani and the rest of the group.

"What happened?!" Hikaru seized the unmoving Host King by his shoulders before snapping upward to glare at the shadow. "What did you do to him?!"

The demon just shrugged and crossed his arms.

"It looked like Tama-chan was mumbling to himself!" Hani cried, shaking his kohai gently.

"It's some kind of telepathy," Kaoru waved a hand fruitlessly before Tamaki's eyes, sparing one resentful glance at his own double before looking away. "They can do it if you look them in the eye for too long." He bit his lower lip. "I should have said something earlier…"

"I thought as much," Kyoya sighed as he leaned over the blond. "And they haven't tried it on anyone else so I assume they can only communicate telepathically with their own doubles."

"Fufufu," Nekozawa chuckled. "Fascinating!"

"Tamaki," Kyoya called, massaging roughly at his shoulder. "Can you hear me?"

The blond just responded with "Bad father" before curling up in a ball and turning onto his side.

His demon chuckled softly from above, tossing his own blond locks back and placing a hand to his hips, the move every bit as vain as Tamaki's usual gestures. "If I hadn't gotten stuck with the biggest idiot in the group, I probably would have found her by now."

"What did you say?!" the twins' heads jolted up with glowering eyes, determined to defend their fallen king. No one insulted Tamaki while he was down, but them of course.

"But I suppose this body makes up for it," the demon followed, his hands cradling his face before snaking suggestively down the contours of his shoulders, waist and hips. "Too bad he isn't a complete narcissist." He nudged Tamaki's head softly with the edge of his foot and the twins jumped up in guard dog mode.

"I can take a hint," the shadow tilted his head before turning abruptly on his heel and starting down the vast, dark corridor. "It's getting late to be fooling around with the homo supporting cast anyhow. I need to find my 'daughter'." He glanced over his shoulder to give them a wink and with one final chuckle, disappeared into the darkness.

"HEY!" Hikaru bolted away from his place beside Tamaki, fists clenched. "GET BACK HERE!" He started to sprint after him when Kaoru caught him by wrist.

"Hikaru," Kaoru pleaded, voice heavy with concern. "You can't beat him alone! And besides," He motioned to the huddled blond beside him, whom was now rocking back and forth, eyes still glazed over. "We can't just leave MiLord like this!"

"Hey MiLord!" Hikaru placed one foot on top of the Host King's back and kicked. "Snap out of it!"

Tamaki just rolled over onto his other side. "Sick…" he mumbled. "Perverted."

"Dammit!" Hikaru cursed, stomping his foot.

"Maybe we can leave Suoh-san in the show room," Nekozawa offered, peering at the boy through his camera phone. "No one's shadow seems to be after him. He'll probably be safe there."

"Perhaps," Kyoya frowned and moved a finger to push his glasses up. "But the shadows aren't opposed to targeting uninvolved parties." He motioned to the leaden body of the security guard in the corner and they all cringed, stomachs twisting. "It's not a safe bet."

"Just leave me," Tamaki breathed softly from his fetal position. "I've been a terrible parent," he whimpered. "I deserve to die."

"WAAAAAH!" Hani ran at the blond, Usa-chan lifted high in his arms. "It's okay, Tama-chan!" He prodded the stuffed bunny against Tamaki's forehead. "We'll get you therapy!"

"Come on, MiLord!" The twins demanded, swatting him over the head with the backs of their hands.

"Are you really going to stand by while Haruhi gets kidnapped by one of those things?!"

"Won't you feel bad if you don't protect her?!"

Tamaki sighed into the stone floors. "How can I dream of protecting my daughter," he muttered. "When I'm such a bad father?"

Hikaru growled to himself, fists so taut that his fingernails tore into his palms. "Do you know what's even worse than a bad father?!" he blared a the Host King. "A father that let's his daughter get kidnapped by shadow demons!"

Tamaki was silent.

"Is that what you want?!" Hikaru practically spat into his ear. "Do you want a shadow demon raising Haruhi?!"

An image suddenly tore through the grey haze that settled over Tamaki's mind. An image of Haruhi donning a black robe, swirling a swiveled cane into a witch's cauldron over a pile of occult books. She lifted her gaze to smile wickedly at him, all of her innocence gone, while her Shadow Demon daddy lurked in the background.

"No!" He snapped up from the fetal position, tears jetting from his eyes. "Daddy won't allow it!" Without a moment for the rest of them to process the motion, he leapt to his feet and raced with incredible speed down the corridor, away from the limited beam of Kyoya's flashlight and into pitch black, leaving only a trail of tears behind him. "HARUHIIIII!"

"MiLord!" Hikaru cried, still crouched over what was just moment's ago Tamaki's defeated form, the outline barely vanished. "Not so fast!" He tore after him.

"Hikaru!" Kaoru tailed his brother.

Kyoya groaned, once again raising the flashlight overhead, desperately struggling to find a balance between keeping the light focused on Kaoru's shadow and trailing the distant corridor to keep up with Tamaki and the twins. Mori and Hani assisted by staying close at his side while dragging the shadow along. Nekozawa followed calmly behind, more relaxed now that it was apparent that all of the shadows they'd encountered were much more intent on locating poor Fujioka than harassing him. In no time, they reached the start of the West corridor and spilled back out into the black and red velvet lavished grand foyer. It sat empty as before, its silence and the peaceful sway of the candelabra flames almost mocking their own panic. Tamaki raced on past the sprawling staircase and onyx chandelier into the darkened dining hall.

"MiLord!" the twins panted, hands clutching their knees as they bent over. "Stop!"

Tamaki finally collapsed, trembling palms planted on the lengthy ebony wood dining table, and crumpled to his knees, features wracked with anguish. "I lost him…"

Hey," the twins stumbled to either side of him, their legs finally buckling onto the grey marble, breathing ragged.

"Don't run off again, MiLord," Kaoru chastised through labored breaths.

"We're never gonna find Haruhi if you keep doing stupid crap like that!" Hikaru glared, placing a hand on his shoulder. "What did that creep say to you to make you so upset anyway?"

Tamaki's head slowly rose from the table, eyes dead serious, to face Hikaru. "S-Sometimes…" he paused. "I think about going on a honeymoon with Haruhi."

The twins drew in a deep breath. They knew where this was going.

"And…" Tamaki's eyes filled with tears. " I kiss her!" he nearly sobbed. "On the mouth!"

The twins just blinked at him dully. "That's it?"

"Doesn't that make me a bad father?" he sniffed, wiping a tear from his eye.

"No comment," The twins answered blankly.

"Doesn't it?!" He shook wildly at the collars of their pajama tees, tears streaming like floodwaters.

"No comment."

"Do you think Haru-chan's been here, Takashi?" Hani asked, taking in the dark dining hall. The ceilings soared stories high and tapestries of several feline breeds hung from their rafters. Long backed, matching ebony chairs with cat eye insignias lined the rectangular table. They'd all shared a lively, candlelit dinner here just hours ago where he'd happily eaten an entire German chocolate cake as they guessed the cat breeds stitched into the silk of the tapestries. Mori identified the most. Haruhi had probably eaten more fancy tuna than was recommended while Tamaki fawned over every moment of it and the twins poked fun. Kyoya pretended to be interested as Nekozawa prattled on excitedly about their next stop— the show room. The hall had seemed so innocent then, but now under nothing but the sequestered beam of the flashlight and the pressing silence of the vacant mansion, it took on an ominous presence.

"Mm," Mori shrugged forlornly on the whereabouts of Haruhi, his attention focused on the frenetic blond on the ground as he manhandled the Hitachiins.

"We have to keep looking, Tamaki," Kyoya advised chidingly as he shined the light down on the three. Hani nodded.

"That monster isn't you, right Tama-chan?" Hani smiled, leaning over the huddle. "Anything it does isn't your fault. There's only one Tama-chan." His gaze traveled to the eldest twin whose fingernails still dug a bit too harshly into his palms. "Same goes for Hika-chan."

Hikaru nodded, sparing his senpai a weak grin and Tamaki's hands went limp, releasing both twins so that he could wipe the wetness underneath his eyes away. "You're right, Hani-senpai," he nodded, his expression taking on its usual confidence. "I may need a little therapy, but that demon is but a pale imitation of my fatherly devotion." He rose to his feet, fists clenched. "We won't be outwitted by our own shadows! After all," he winked. "A mere shadow can't hope to aspire to the power of a true host! And that's why," He pointed at them all, eyes serious. "Operation: Save Haruhi won't fail!"

"Right!" the twins and Hani cheered, arms raised, while Mori saluted.

Shadow Kaoru scoffed.

"So inspiring, Suoh-kun!" Nekozawa sniffed from behind his camera phone, eyes glassy, and a rare, genuine smile curved over Kyoya's lips.

"Should we split up now?" Mori put in his even rarer two cents. "Mitsukuni and I—"

"No way Mori-senpai!" Tamaki immediately retorted. "Now that I've observed these demons in action, I see splitting up is a terrible idea! We'll need all of our strengths combined to save Haruhi! Besides, I just remembered," His voice lowered to a husky whisper, eyes grave. "In scary movies, when the group splits up, something bad always happens! Nothing good ever comes from splitting up!" He wagged his finger at them.

"But they split up all the time on Scooby Doo, MiLord," the twins argued.

"This isn't like Scooby Doo, you idiots! This is real Black Magic!" Tamaki snapped and Nekozawa squeed.

"Follow me!" He waved overhead, already making his way toward the rear of the dining hall, past the towering windows revealing nothing but lonely cliff and sea and to a homely little white door. He placed a hand upon the wood. "Where does this lead to, Nekozawa-senpai?"

"The kitchens," Nekozawa replied. "Do you think she'd be there?"

"We have to look everywhere." Tamaki pushed the door open and they advanced into the narrowed area with he and Kyoya at the front, the beam of the flashlight trailing the path ahead. The ceilings were much lower here, the rafters less polished. The walls consisted of separate stones and steel pots, pans and other utensils hung from hooks there. Long counters stretched and outlined the entire room. The bowls that Haruhi had used that night to prepare dinner — with the hosts' volunteered "help"— still sat freshly washed upon the single table in the center.

"Ever thought about having lights installed?" Hikaru grumbled, eyes confined to the flashlight's glow.

"It adds to the estate's gothic charm," Nekozawa explained with a flourish at the stony walls.

"We need to find more flashlights," Kaoru sighed, dropping down to his knees to rummage through the drawers and counter cabinets.

"Good point, Kaoru." Hikaru joined him.

"Haruhi!" Tamaki called as he poked his head around the corner where two dusty, old stone ovens and a stove sat alone.

"You know…" Hani tapped thoughtfully at his lips. "If Tama-chan and Hika-chan's shadows haven't found Haru-chan and Kao-chan is here…" He turned to the rest of them. "Who else could she be with?"

They all tensed, their narrowed eyes roving from host to host, save for Nekozawa and Kaoru's shadow, both of whom just watched in general amusement.

"Fufufu," Nekozawa chortled. "Fujioka-kun is so popular…"

"Well, Mori-senpai's shadow would go for Hani-senpai," Kaoru started.

"And Hani-senpai's shadow would probably go for Mori-senpai," Hikaru added.

"So that means…"

All eyes in the room zeroed in on the last remaining host. He frowned in turn, glasses facing downward as if studying the ground intensely, his forehead wrinkling. A sensation of deep discomfort settled over him and for the first time that night, he genuinely loathed the powers that be for placing him in this situation.

"Kyoya…" Tamaki turned to him with solemn eyes, speaking slowly as if the words would lash out and bite him. "Do you think you…" He paused, remembering Hani's words earlier. "… your shadow— took Haruhi?"

Silence.

"Kyoya!" Tamaki seized him by the shoulders, eyes wild, and he jerked suddenly out of his thoughts.

"I don't know!" he snapped honestly, shoving the blond away. "But what matters now is that we keep looking for…" He caught something further down the narrow kitchen enclave beyond the stoves and his eyes widened. "Haruhi?"

A small figure about Haruhi's size huddled in the corner at the very back of the enclave, its head turned toward the wall. It seemed fiercely concentrated on something in its hands, its back moving slightly. With a deep breath, Kyoya lifted the flashlight, focusing the beam square on the small form. It immediately tensed, its head jolting up and finally swiveled around, eyes narrowed, something creamy and moist dripping from its gaping mouth.

"Cake!" Hani identified the substance with more glee than the situation called for.

"Mitsukuni." Mori grasped his cousin's shoulders and backed away.

"Hani-senpai!" Tamaki and the twins shrieked as the shadow demon stood, its rosy pink bunny onsie a sharp contrast to the palpable disdain twisting its usually adorable features.


	9. Chapter Nine

The adorable shadow demon lifted the back of his hand to his lips and scrubbed roughly across their length, crumbs and bits of strawberry from the leftover cake they'd shared that night whittling to the kitchen floors. He dragged the hand from his mouth and flicked it carelessly toward the ground, the aristocratic manners that Hani had been bred with thrown to the wind. Finally, he averted darkened hazel eyes to glare daggers at them.

A chorus of gasps rose from the group and they took wary steps backward. Hani began to sniffle, tears dampening his cheeks. "He's eating all the leftover cake…" He rubbed his tiny fists against his eyes.

"Hani-senpai…" the twins groaned lowly from his side. "Is that really important?"

"Right!" Tamaki nodded, arms outstretched as he stepped forward. "We have to protect Mori-senpai!"

The twins and Nekozawa reluctantly followed suit and soon they had all joined hands in a circle with Mori in the center. However, as the tallest and bulkiest of their crew, he still stood out.

"Mori-senpai!" Tamaki whispered fiercely from over his shoulder. "Duck down!"

"Mm." Mori nodded in determination and started to crouch when an exasperated blend between a sigh and a growl came and they looked down to see the tiny shadow demon rolling its eyes.

"Morons," it seethed, lips trembling with rage. "I don't want him."

Tamaki and the twins gasped, the backs of their hands flying over their mouths. Mori paused mid-crouch.

"I want…" the Shadow Hani lowered his gaze, the tremor spreading throughout his entire form, nose wrinkled in disgust. "I want…"

"Haruhi?" Tamaki asked fearfully.

"CAKE!" the demon snapped, forcing the much loathed word through gritted teeth, unable to keep tears of frustration from clouding its eyes. "WHAT KIND OF FREAK HUMAN VALUES CAKE AS THEIR MOST IMPORTANT THING?!"

The entire room silenced, stumped as to an answer to defend their friend. They indulged the obsession, but they couldn't deny that it was a strange one.

Tears sprung from Hani's eyes in turn as he clutched his Usa-chan close to his chest. "What do you mean?!" he cried. "Cake is extremely important!"

The demon stretched a hand into the refrigerator and it receded with a fistful of strawberry white cake. He jammed the entire thing into his mouth, tears running down his cheeks, clearly hating himself for it.

"So…" Kaoru began, his stomach souring as cream and strawberry glaze oozed from the corners of the shadow's lips. "Hani-senpai cares even more about cake than Mori-senpai…"

"No wonder he didn't seem too worried about Mori-senpai," Hikaru tilted his head and cupped a hand over his lips to whisper into Kaoru's ear.

"Poor Mori-senpai…" They both frowned in sympathy, careful not to stare at their senior as he loomed at the center of their now useless protection circle, head bowed in obsolescence.

"M-Mori-senpai…" Tamaki leaned into the circle, one hand extended for comfort when a cruel sound erupted from the rear of the group. Kyoya took a step away, taken aback when the shadow to his left fell into a fit of uproarious laughter, to the point of bending over against his restraints.

"That's too good," Shadow Kaoru howled, bending torso over knees now, the duct tape tightening with each cackle. "What are you gonna do?" he forced between fits. "I can't wait to see you mark a cake!" The laughter intensified and Kaoru shuddered at his own voice, unnatural and contorted. He almost felt sorry for Hani-senpai's shadow, but at least Mori-senpai would be safe…

Shadow Hani stared at his fellow demon with cold, empty eyes before letting a knowing smirk curl about his lips. "I don't see your brother's shadow anywhere, Kao-chan," he noted in mock innocence, feet shuffling the ground. "He must be somewhere with Haru-chan," he finished with a giggle, his eyes rising to meet the other shadow's.

Shadow Kaoru immediately sobered, amber gaze going rigid and dark. He slowly stood upright again, glare fixed on Hani's shadow. Kaoru, Hikaru and Tamaki all visibly tensed.

Between Kaoru's crestfallen expression and the panicked glaze returning to Tamaki's eyes, Hikaru groaned, running his fingers so roughly through his dark hair that he yanked a lone strand out. "He doesn't know what the hell he's talking about. He's just trying to get to us."

"Actually, I do," Shadow Hani sang in a sickeningly sweet tone from beneath a curtain of sandy blond. "She was with Kyo-chan," he taunted mockingly, gaze settling on Kyoya whose eyes went wide behind the glasses. "But Hika-chan stole her away." He tapped thoughtfully at his lips. "I think he took her further down the East wing."

The moisture evaporated from Hikaru's tongue, his breathing shallowing. He barely registered as Kaoru reached out to take his hand, a mix of sympathy and his own concern for their favorite "toy".

"We're going to find her before anything bad happens, Hikaru." He squeezed gently at his hand.

"Poor Haruhi," Tamaki bit at his thumbnail, nearly ripping it from the bed. "She must be terrified…" So many demons after his daughter! His eyes trailed suspiciously to his best friend whose features creased and tugged downward, one finger fixed to his glasses. After discovering Hani's shadow's fixation, he had hoped that Kyoya's would be something like money or black, leather bound volumes. But he supposed he shouldn't have underestimated a mother's love…

"It's alright, Mommy," he nodded, arms crossed, eyes closed in understanding. "Daddy sympathizes with you."

Kyoya's scowl only deepened.

"That's why we're going to rescue Haruhi right now!" Tamaki marched back toward the main kitchen in the direction of the East wing's corridor. "Come on, men!" He waved over his shoulder and they all turned to follow him.

"Um…" Hani started to turn toward the rest of the group reluctantly, but his eyes lingered on his own shadow. Mori stood by, eying the shadow vigilantly, his hand firm on Shadow Kaoru's shoulder.

"You can't really mark every cake, right?" Hani asked fearfully into his own cold, glaring eyes. Is this what it was like to face himself upon waking every morning? He suddenly felt terrible for the Haninozuka estate staff. "Even if you mark one cake, there's still plenty of cakes for me to eat and even more ingredients to make cake with," he went on almost desperately. "You could never take my place using cake."

Shadow Hani nodded and relief swelled in Hani's chest.

"So I'm going to kill you," Shadow Hani said so innocently that the actual meaning of the words almost flew over Hani's head. The same couldn't be said for Mori who grunted and immediately took his cousin by the shoulder to draw him backwards. The rest of the club and Nekozawa all spun around, eyes fearful. They should have known walking away wouldn't be that easy.

"Kill me?!" Hani whimpered, eyes ballooning and swimming with tears.

"B- But you're forbidden to murder your own human, Shadow-san," Nekozawa cut in, his fingers wavering as he hovered his camera phone over the scene. "You'll die too."

Shadow Hani just sneered knowingly. "There is a way," he breathed softly. "But first," His head jolted up so that he faced his double directly, features twisted with malice. "I need you." One thin arm launched out to grasp Hani only to be blocked by a much larger one. Mori winced, the force of the shadow's arm pressing against his own like hard metal and bruising deep into the skin to graze the bone. He dropped to his knees, the deep blue of his pajama pants gathering dust from the kitchen floor.

"Mori-senpai!" Tamaki and the twins cried.

"Takashi!" Hani started forward when Hikaru and Kaoru tackled him by the arms.

"You can't, Hani-senpai!" Hikaru held fast.

"That's what it wants," Kaoru grunted as they both dragged him backwards.

"Mituskuni, ru—" Mori started before a miniature hand casually reached out to take the collar of his button up pajama top and wrenched him about, his back slamming harshly against the metal of the refrigerator. Groaning, he slid downward to his knees until his eyes leveled with the shadow's.

"I don't want to hurt you, Takashi," Shadow Hani leaned into him, its iron grasp still locked around the cotton blue lapels. "So stay out of my way," he seethed and let Mori drop, bottom first to the ground before turning back to face Hani.

The Host Club had gathered in front of him, expressions determined, but their resolve shrank more and more as they watched the shadow manhandle the kendo master like a rag doll.

"Takashi!" Hani tore out from behind the group, tears flying.

"But Hani-senpai—" Tamaki protested, one hand on his shoulder.

"No Tama-can!" Hani snapped around to face him, cheeks blazing. "I'm the strongest one here! I can't just stand by while he hurts everyone!"

Tamaki stared at him with concerned eyes as if searching for something. He finally nodded, features growing solemn. "Kyoya." He lifted his hand from Hani's shoulder and shifted it toward the Shadow King, palm open. "The candle."

Kyoya reached into his pocket, grabbing the velvet bag with the cursed candle inside, and Nekozawa leapt several feet away.

"We have to be careful with this, Tamaki," Kyoya told him, peeking in to examine the still burning flame for any changes. "We still don't know what it—"

The Host King promptly plucked the bag from Kyoya's fingers and tossed it at Hani as he sprinted toward his shadow. "USE IT TO PROTECT YOURSELF, SENPAI!"

Ignoring Kyoya's disapproving scowl, Hani caught the candle in midair. He nodded at Tamaki before turning to face himself, eyes daring. Shadow Hani tensed slightly upon spotting the object, but his shoulders relaxed almost immediately afterward. "You think that's going to hurt me?"

Hani swallowed audibly, but he remained in fighter stance, the candle positioned in front of him.

"You probably don't even know how it works, do you Idiot-chan?" Shadow Hani sang, stepping slowly forward, hands resting casually behind his back. He started to take a second stride when something soft sounded behind him.

Plop! Plip! Plop!

Both Hanis gasped, their features paling as yet another cake hit the dusty, old stone of the kitchen floor. Mori had managed to pull the fridge door open and thread his fingers through the grooves of the shelves where he was currently prodding several cakes— strawberry, chocolate and banana— to the edge. Eventually, they hurtled to their doom upon the ground, melding with dust, dead beetles and other occupants of the neglected kitchen floor. Mori stared at Hani's shadow, eyes challenging.

"Takashi!" Hani cried, tears sprouting. "WHY?!"

Shadow Hani trembled, his fists curling tightly at his sides. "Takashi…" An inhuman growl rumbled somewhere from deep within the demon and they all gasped as he flew at Mori, arms outstretched.

"Mori-senpai!" they all called out, but it was too late. Hani's shadow launched a searing punch across his jaw and he crumpled to the ground in pain, breathing labored.

"Takashi!" Hani raced forward when a hand took him by the shoulder. "Don't try to stop me!" He swatted the hand away. I have to help…" His eyes trailed up to face the tall man at his side. "… Takashi?"

"M-Mori-senpai?" Tamaki and the twins blinked at the duplicate of Mori that now hovered over Hani. He was still. Eerily so as he stared down at the boy, dark grey eyes like stone.

"Frankenstein!" the twins and Tamaki cried together as they clutched one another's shoulders for support.

"How long has he been standing there?!" Hikaru and Kaoru cried in panic.

"For two minutes at least," Nekozawa informed them from behind. "Fufufu…"

"Why didn't you say anything?!" Tamaki snapped around at his senior, eyes agitated. He immediately spun back toward Hani, feet flying over the floors, hand outstretched. "Hani-sen—"

Like lightening, the Frankenstein-like demon hoisted Hani over his shoulder and sped out of the kitchen at an impossible speed, flashing through the dining room and vanishing into the foyer leaving nothing but a stream of Hani's tears.

"TAKASHIIII!" the cry sprang up and disappeared in a flurry of echoes as quickly as it had sounded.

"Mitsukuni…" Mori grumbled, his voice wracked with pain, before stumbling to his feet, the bruise on his cheek already swelling, one eye squinted.

"M-Mori-senpai…" The twins started to approach him when he tore forward, out of the kitchen and through the dining hall.

"Mitsukuni!"

They all watched in stunned silence as he disappeared into the darkness, racing at a faster speed than any of them could match.

Shadow Hani pouted, eyes piercing disdainfully at the spot where Shadow Mori and Hani had vanished. Sighing, he plucked Usa-chan from the ground before any of them could think to grab it. "I guess I'll babysit this for now" He hugged the stuffed bunny to his chest and started toward the kitchen's exit when the twins and Tamaki moved to block his way, eyes accusing, the recollection of the bruised and bloodied Mori still fresh in their minds.

"Are you sure you want to waste your time on me?" it cooed sweetly. "You're down three now, right?" he winked, waving three fingers in the air. "Time's running out," he smirked darkly. "I'd split up and start looking if I were you." With that, he walked past their group, eyes daring them to make a move, before crossing the dark dining hall, making a sharp left and dodging out of sight.

"Dammit!" Hikaru rushed out after him, eyes wild. On one side, the moonlit corridor of the East wing welcomed him and at the head of the dining hall, the old gothic foyer where they'd first met their shadows. He slammed his hand, fist first into the greying wallpaper and immediately hissed, shaking his fingers wildly. "They went in completely different directions! Haruhi's in the East wing!"

Kyoya's gaze followed the beam of his flashlight thoughtfully as it scanned the vacant checkered floors of the foyer and the dark, stony walls of the eastern corridor. Had Hikaru really taken Haruhi there? He repositioned his glasses harshly. Hani's shadow had been almost too eager to tell them exactly where she was.

"We'll have to split up," Tamaki declared, one finger extended toward them and Kyoya frowned at the echo of Shadow Hani's suggestion. "In the Scooby Doo way!"

"Right!" The twins nodded, expressions serious, two fists shooting upward. Kaoru massaged gently at Hikaru's battered fingers with his free hand.

"Kaoru is with me!" Hikaru proclaimed, one hand sidling around his brother and pulling him inward.

Overcompensating, Kaoru's own voice chided against the confines of his mind, but he knew the thought was not his own. Determined to ignore his shadow, he nodded. "I'm with Hikaru!"

"Good!" Tamaki nodded. "Did you find flashlights?"

"Yessir!" They both raised two heavy duty, yellow flashlights over their heads. "And batteries too!" They handed Kyoya a pack of AA batteries and he nodded in gratitude, placing it in his pocket.

"Great!" Tamaki nodded. "You two will follow Mori-senpai and help get Hani-senpai and the candle back!"

"What?!" both twins snapped.

"Why do you get to go after Haruhi?!" Hikaru demanded, starting forward.

"Idiots!" Tamaki loomed over them. "I'm her father! Who better to go after his daughter but her daddy?!" he reasoned. "And mommy," he added as an afterthought.

"Besides," Kyoya began, arms crossed. "We seem to be weak against our own demons." He watched Shadow Kaoru out of the corner of his eye. "It's probably best if you don't get too close. Speaking of which," He motioned to the shadow this time and glanced at Tamaki. "He's coming with us. Nekozawa-senpai can watch him."

"Fufufu," Nekozawa chuckled, creepy grin wide. "We're going to have such fun together, Shadow-san."

"Oh goody," Shadow Kaoru droned, lips tugging downward.

"He's right, Hikaru," Kaoru spoke lowly, the memory of his break down in the show room clouding over him. He couldn't imagine his brother enduring the same.

"Fine," Hikaru grumbled, shoving his hands roughly into his pajama pockets. "When are we meeting back up?"

"We'll give it about an hour and meet in the foyer by midnight," Kyoya waved his phone before them, the digital clock there reading 11:08 PM. "Hopefully at least one of us will have some success," he sighed.

Hikaru nodded, fumbling around in his pockets. "We'll just use…" His eyes widened. "Kaoru." He turned to his brother. "Do you have our phone?"

Kaoru patted his orange pajama pants down and a frown tugged at his lips. "I thought you had it, Hikaru."

"Nekozawa-senpai?" Kyoya turned to their senior who was already frisking Shadow Kaoru with much glee.

"Nothing here, Kyoya-kun," Nekozawa informed him, his hands still resting on a mildly peeved Shadow Kaoru's shoulders.

"You can use mine." Tamaki plucked a smartphone with a sakura petal case and a tiny crown charm from his pocket and shoved it into Hikaru's hands. "Now that that's settled…" He removed a black magic marker from the same pocket and grinned at them.

"What all do you have in there?" the twins asked.

"I'll mark us all with a special sign!" Tamaki finished, winking.

A few minutes later, he crossed his arms and beamed proudly down at his work. Three tiny Kuma-chans with crowns were sketched neatly upon the upper backs of his friends, just where the spine began. "This way, we'll be able to tell who's real!"

"Nice design, MiLord," Hikaru and Kaoru snickered as they examined one another's backs.

"Oi! Kyoya! Do me! Do me!" Tamaki shoved the marker into his best friend's hand and rushed to pull down on the white material of his tank top.

Sighing, Kyoya finished rebuttoning his own grey top. Taking the marker, he began sketching a simple 'T' mark despite Tamaki's ardent attempts to swivel his neck to watch his work.

"You're not doing it right!"

"Okay MiLord!" The twins waved at him as they started their way back toward the lobby. "We're gonna try to catch up with Mori-senpai."

Tamaki lifted a hand in protest before letting it sink back down to his side. The Kuma-chan sketches had been his last unconscious attempt to hold them there, but he supposed they had to split up at some point. For Haruhi's, Hani-senpai's and Mori-senpai's sake. He blinked back to reality when Hikaru took him firmly by the hands and he looked up to see the twin staring him down with so much solemnity that he blanched.

"Don't let Haruhi get hurt." Hikaru squeezed at Tamaki's hands. "You insisted on saving her so I'm holding you responsible if anything happens to her!"

Tamaki gulped, but nodded solemnly regardless, eyes determined. It was a promise.

Hikaru's hands slipped away and he backed toward the foyer to join Kaoru. Waving, they starting across the checkered floor to join the complex network of shadows beneath the swaying, black crystal chandelier. The dark lobby seemed to swallow them as they journeyed farther away, the beam of their flashlights growing smaller and smaller.

"Hikaru… Kaoru…" Why did it feel as if it would be a long time before he saw them again?

"Tamaki."

He turned back to see Kyoya eying him expectantly as he headed toward the entrance to the East wing corridor. Nekozawa chatted endlessly beside Shadow Kaoru, who seemed at least vaguely amused. The corridor stretched on forward into what seemed like eternity, the inky, still sea outside its towering windows just as black as the shadow within. So Haruhi had walked these halls? His daughter was fiercely independent, but surely this would frighten even her. And he'd sworn to be there for her in a similar estate just months ago... Fists clenching at his sides, he started forward to resume his spot as leader of the pack. He had a promise to keep. To Haruhi, to Hikaru and to himself.


	10. Chapter Ten

The East corridor proved to be as unsettling as the West. And unlike the latter, no glowing candelabras lined the dark passageway. Only the beam of Kyoya's flashlight and the faint, pale luminance of the full moon through the soaring windows of the hall lit their path. The floors resumed the black and white checkered marble from the foyer, the boys' footsteps clapping upon the stone and Tamaki's occasional gasp at an unexpected crouching stone gargoyle the only sounds in the hollow silence.

Not as much as a sigh had passed between the four, save for Nekozawa's endless curiosity in the demon at his side. He watched Kaoru's shadow from a distance that anyone else would have found smothering, a creepy grin playing beneath his hood all the while. When he thought it wasn't looking, he even stole a sniff or two. Shadow Kaoru let the invasive inspection carry on, keeping his duct taped arms obediently clasped at his sides. He spared Nekozawa a vaguely amused glance every once in a while, but the bulk of his attention settled on the two boys on their left.

Tamaki and Kyoya strolled in complete silence, an unusual gap between the two as they kept slightly ahead of the group, occasionally stopping to poke their heads into the empty chambers that lined the corridor. Dark vacant sitting areas where portraits of black felines sulked from the walls and dusty grey chaise sofas settled noisily into the floors. Showcase rooms that housed Victorian dressed porcelain dolls with black marbles for eyes watching them vacantly from glass chiffonier prisons. There was even a music room. But still no Haruhi.

Tamaki's frame tensed more and more with each futile room scan, his shallow breathing joining the rapt clatter of their footsteps and the occasional "Fufu." Are we walking fast enough? he thought, the panic rising for the dozenth time in the pit of his stomach and clawing up his insides. He stared into the mysterious dark maw just ahead of the flashlight's reach and used all of his willpower to reign in the gnawing urge to charge forward and meet it. He couldn't panic. Good fathers always kept their cool when their daughters were in peril. Like Liam Neeson, he nodded to himself. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes briefly. When he opened them again, he couldn't help but avert his gaze in Kyoya's direction. The Shadow King appeared to be in deep thought as well, brow furrowed. Tamaki knew the feeling well and it more than unnerved him to see it etched across the features of his normally dispassionate best friend.

But why did the thought of Kyoya's shadow pursuing Haruhi bother him so much? Kyoya was 'Mommy' after all and Haruhi was his youngest. Of course she meant a lot to him. And then Hikaru was her brother…

We both know you like Haruhi that way, Kaoru's conversation with Hikaru echoed back to him.

Something tight and heavy curled at the mount of Tamaki's stomach to crowd his throat and, suddenly, he felt very sick. That way? Weren't they a family. Swallowing the feeling back down, he shook his head and set his eyes forward again into the beckoning dark.

Kyoya's hand gripped the flashlight just a bit tighter when he felt Tamaki's concerned eyes inspect him for what was probably the tenth time in the past five minutes. He let a deep exhalation escape through his nose, adjusting his glasses in agitation. He had grown accustomed to the role of fixer to whatever problem ailed Tamaki and the rest of the club, but it seemed he'd now involuntarily become part of that problem. He felt out of place and worse, exposed. But perhaps more pressingly, he was confused.

For the first time in his life, he openly resented his callous upbringing. The manner in which he was raised proved to be fundamental in terms of business and manipulation tactics, but in a situation like this, no matter how unlikely, it left him utterly defenseless. He still hadn't completely shed the deeply ingrained idea that emotions were weakness and he likely never would in entirety. His innermost feelings were still largely a puzzle to him and one that he mostly preferred to leave undone.

But then, he wasn't as dense as Tamaki. Though not keen on surrendering his reputation as an egoist, deep down he knew that he too experienced human emotion. Haruhi's observation that he received some emotional benefit from her and the rest of the club was more than just "an interesting notion". His brow knitted tighter as he struggled to access his psyche. He cared for Haruhi's well-being as demonstrated by the lurching panic that bubbled within him every time he imagined his shadow with her. He respected her nerve and her intelligence— which meant a lot coming from him. If it weren't for her low social status and other conflicting factors, he could perhaps even see her in another light. She was an important part of the puzzle that joined his sentiments together. He knew that. So then, why did he feel as though the pieces didn't quite add up?

In addition, if his shadow really had kidnapped Haruhi, why hadn't it acted? He hadn't felt anything like the pain Kaoru experienced in the show room. And how had Hikaru's shadow stolen her away? Had Hani's shadow been honest with them in the first place? He clenched his teeth, the tremor in his fingers returning.

"Kyoya." He felt a hand on his shoulder and immediately snapped out of the harrowing daze to register Tamaki's weak grin.

"Don't worry, Mommy," Tamaki held up a peace sign. "We'll rescue our daughter."

"Right." Kyoya responded with a slight nod before averting his gaze, too frustrated to engage Tamaki's delusions. The idiot was truly hopeless.

"So I'm curious about your battle strategy," Shadow Kaoru spoke, the vaguely amused grin still playing on his lips as he strolled calmly down the hall, Nekozawa close at his side. "Surely you don't plan on attacking my brother head on," he smirked. "Because that worked out so well for you the first time."

"It's simple," Tamaki responded, nodding resolutely to himself. Turning to face everyone, he slammed his fist down into his palm. "Kyoya will act as a distraction." He leaned in to whisper to Shadow Kaoru and Nekozawa. "He already appears demonic so Hikaru's shadow will think it's Kyoya's actual shadow come to take Haruhi back!" He receded away with a nervous wink at Kyoya before going on in his regular tone. "While they engage in demon battle, Nekozawa-senpai, you," he eyed the shadow apprehensively. "And I will grab Haruhi, signal Kyoya and carry her away into the— Ow!"" Tamaki exclaimed as the flashlight rapped upon the back of his head.

"You are aware that this isn't one of your fever dreams?" Kyoya sighed exasperatedly before addressing Kaoru's shadow. "If you really want to assist us and you want revenge on Hikaru's shadow, you can act as bait and face him head on," he advised. "Regardless, when we find them, we'll lay low until an opportunity presents itself to rescue Haruhi."

Nekozawa and Shadow Kaoru both gave him a thumbs up.

"Fufu," Nekozawa chuckled. "Excellent plan, Kyo-kun!"

Tamaki moped as he trudged ahead of them, shoulders slumped. He liked his plan better… He couldn't just stand by and wait while that delinquent Demon Hikaru toyed with his Haruhi. Or worse— marked her! He frowned, realizing that he wasn't quite certain what the mark even was.

"Nekozawa-senpai," he started, glancing over his shoulder. "What exactly is the mark anyway?" He fidgeted with his fingers. "It won't burn her, will it?" In his inner mind, an image billowed into focus. Shadow Hikaru chuckled wickedly as he loomed over Haruhi with an orange hot poker in hand, a group of demon monks in robes chanting all around them. Haruhi shrieked in terror as the vision evaporated and an angry quiver shook Tamaki's entire form.

Shadow Kaoru snorted at him, masking laughter.

"The mark doesn't have to be literal, Suoh-kun," Nekozawa leaned into Tamaki's headspace causing him to flinch. "And if it is, it's usually accompanied by some sort of ceremony," he explained in macabre glee. "Like the victim's sacrifice!"

Tamaki's eyes grew frightfully wide, a high pitched gurgling noise escaping his lips.

"But since Hametsu's wife lived long after Hametsu himself was turned into shadow, that's probably not the case," Nekozawa concluded, an edge of disappointment in his tone. "Perhaps a fireside ritual with skulls and—"

Kaoru's shadow laughed openly now, as much malice lurking behind his eyes as it had in the showroom. "The mark isn't accompanied by some silly dance or a sacrifice. Its purpose is to capture the affections of those most important to us," it went on. "It succeeds if we can create a stronger bond with them than our human counterpart." He smiled wickedly at Tamaki. "Even just for a moment."

Tamaki blinked, dumbfounded. "But how can anyone create a bond that strong in just one night?" he frowned, cradling his chin in thought. "It could take years to build that kind of connection."

"There are other methods." Kaoru grinned devilishly, his tongue slipping languidly from his mouth and tracing the contours of his lips sensuously as he observed the three, anticipating their reactions. They all paused mid-walk. Kyoya stiffened, his glasses sliding down the bridge of his nose where he made no move to reposition them. Tamaki stared blankly at Kaoru's shadow for a time when the light suddenly began to settle on him, the whites of his eyes growing steadily, his features blanching.

"Fufufu… Shadow-san!" Nekozawa blushed underneath the hood and gave Shadow Kaoru a playful shove before immediately cringing at the hardness of the demon's shoulders. "You're so dirty!" he chuckled through the pain. "But that makes sense. Shadow demons are classified as incubi and what's more, they're generally loveless creatures," he explained excitedly. "The closest thing they'd be able to equate to love is… Suoh-kun?" The lecture trailed off mid-sentence when Tamaki began to tremble violently. "Suo-" Nekozawa started before Tamaki shot forward, off into a blur.

"HARUHIIII!" Tamaki cried desperately as he sailed down the corridor, out of the flashlight's beam and into darkness. "HARUHI!"

"Tamaki!" Kyoya called after him, maneuvering the flashlight in a frenzied attempt to keep it trained on the blond. He cursed when the vague bobbing blur vanished into shadow, leaving only distant, shrill cries of Haruhi's name in its wake. "Idiot," he grunted before taking off after him into the looming blackness. "Tamaki!"

Nekozawa and Kaoru's shadow watched as both boys disappeared down the corridor.

Shadow Kaoru sighed, a ghost of the wicked grin still playing on his lips. "Things are unraveling pretty fast, eh?"

Nekozawa nodded with a frown, his camera phone in hand. "And I'm running out of gigabytes…"

* * *

 

"Haruhi!" Tamaki sprinted down the corridor, arms pumping wildly as he charged into room after empty room, using only the sparing moonlight to guide his path, his fears forgotten. A candlelit reading room. A dusty, vacant theater. A narrow bathroom with missing tiles. No Haruhi. No Haruhi. No Haruhi. Grunting, he propelled himself further down the corridor, ignoring the aching in his back and legs from his earlier confrontation with the shadows. He had to find Haruhi. He had to. Before… The image of her smiling face appeared in his mind, pure and honest without any of the usual frilly trimmings that his inner mind adorned her with. He couldn't bear the thought of… He shook his head, his pace quickening to a dangerous speed as he neared the edge of the corridor. He wouldn't let that happen to Haruhi!

Tamaki let out a choked cry as he barreled into a suit of armor, a chorus of discordant clanging piercing the silence, ricocheting down the corridor, and disappearing into the dark. He lay stomach first over the disjointed mess of metal limbs and torso, his own shoulders and sides now aching as badly as his back and legs. Groaning, he pulled himself to his knees with a pained grunt. This pain was nothing compared to the strife of a concerned father! Gritting his teeth, he started to push himself from the marble when he heard it. Laughter so hauntingly familiar that his skin went numb. Hikaru's shadow.

"Hey!" he roared, leaping to his feet, eyes readjusting to the dim corridors. "Where are you?! Where's Haruhi?!"

The laughter brushed against his ears once again and he flinched, eyes darting further down the lonely, moonlit corridor and then back from whence he came. The voice could have easily been projecting from anywhere. It somehow managed to lurk just behind him and far out into the gaping black sea beyond windows all at once.

"Godammit," he cursed, fists tightening. "SHOW YOUR—"

A sickeningly familiar shriek erupted from somewhere at the very end of the corridor and Tamaki's breathing lapsed, pupils narrowing. He lifted a hand to the wall to steady himself as the scream tore through him again, searing fire deep into his skin and twisting his insides. For a second he thought he might vomit, but the shock quickly gave over to something he rarely let himself feel, let alone exhibit— rage.

"HARUHI!" he roared, shooting off mindlessly toward the edge of the corridor, the half lit sneers of stony gargoyles and empty suits of armor forgotten. More and more images of the commoner invaded his vision. Haruhi musing thoughtfully over a grocery coupon book. Haruhi welcoming guests at the club. Haruhi giving him that unamused stare that was blank but penetrating all the same. How could anyone dream of hurting her?! Panting, he veered with uncharacteristic prowess in and out between the statues when he finally reached the end of the hall. Or rather the beginning of what seemed to be a library. He veered past the greyed, cracked white pillars of the antechamber and into the candlelit confines of the wide expanse where gently swaying candelabras hung from the ceiling and the strident scent of aged parchment and dust hit his nostrils immediately. Worn, leather bound volumes and browning scriptures scattered the rectangular tables and more book shelves than he could ever dream of reading through in his life time loomed over him from every side. A winding oak staircase scaled at least four floors and the archway that had led him there seemed to diverge in the middle and branch out into several smaller corridors, all lined with books and odd displays— straw dolls, skeletal structures, and globes that didn't in the least resemble the planet Earth. Swallowing hard, he slowed upon reaching the center of the main library chamber, sweat drenching his brow, shoulders drooping toward the scarlet carpet. How was he ever going to find Haruhi in this maze?

"MiLord," the voice breathed teasingly against his ear and he knew it wasn't the playful, older Hitachiin he was used to.

"HARUHI!" he blared out into the empty, dust tinged air. "WHERE IS SHE?!"

When he just received a low snicker in response, he seized his head, threaded his fingers roughly through the ruffled blond. But then… That time the voice had sounded fairly focused. He lifted his head up in the direction of the laughter to find the dimmest of the narrow corridors before him, a pathway into shadow formed by book shelves and unlit gothic overhead lamps. He started to follow it when something seized him roughly by the back collar of his tank top.

"You idiot!" Kyoya seethed through gritted teeth, struggling to adjust his skewed glasses with shaky fingers, his breathing labored from running. "You can't just take off like that!"

"But Haruhi—" Tamaki started, eyes wild. "We have to hurry! Hikaru's shadow—"

"You saw him?" Kyoya hunched over, his fingers pressing into his knees, breathing steadying.

"He—" Tamaki started, cutting off abruptly when Hikaru's laughter pressed harshly against both their ears. They both turned with a jolt in its direction.

"We're not moving fast enough!" Tamaki seized Kyoya by the wrist and tugged him toward the narrow, dark hall. He blinked, dumbstruck when Kyoya didn't budge. Instead, he grasped Tamaki's wrist in turn and leaned forward, eyes darting about suspiciously.

"Don't you think," Kyoya began lowly, though his common sense told him the demon could likely pick up every word. "It's odd that he's baiting us? That Hani-senpai's shadow told us where she was?"

Tamaki's brow wrinkled. "I don't—"

"MiLord…" Shadow Hikaru's voice cooed against his ear again and he leapt forward, nearly ramming into Kyoya. "Did you hear that?!"

Kyoya's forehead wrinkled. "Hear what?!"

"We have to go!" Tamaki pulled frantically at his wrist. "Why would they bait us?! Haruhi's the one in trouble!" he cried. "Don't you care about her?! You're her mother!"

"Tamaki!" Kyoya started before breathing in deeply, a sore attempt to keep the desperate tremor from his voice. Teeth gritted, he seized the blond roughly by the shoulder. "It's a trap." He spoke tersely, spacing the words as if he were conversing with a child.

"We can't afford to think like that!" Tamaki barked, twisting away from him. "What if it's not a trap?!"

"How stupid are you?!" Kyoya snapped, his grip tightening, eyes just as emblazoned, his cool demeanor completely vanishing. "It obviously wants you to follow it!" He threw a quick glance over his shoulder. "We need to wait for Nekozawa-senpai and Kaoru's—"

"No!" Tamaki finally wrestled his arm out of Kyoya's grasp. "This is no time to be cautious, Kyoya!"

No time to be cautious? Kyoya nearly popped a blood vessel. "There are shadow demons after us, you complete—" Taking another breath and resisting the urge to strangle him, he gathered himself. "I want to help Haruhi too," he spoke evenly. "I just…" He silenced, uncertain of how to voice the strange blur of sinister thoughts that hadn't quite melded into anything cognizant yet. "I feel…" The words seemed foreign to him and he didn't believe in intuition. "I think," he lied. It was definitely more a feeling, waving and leaping at the tip of his consciousness, begging him to grasp the situation, to finally "get it". "This is a bad idea," he finished, more callously than he'd intended.

"A bad idea?" Tamaki scoffed angrily, his fingers pressing roughly at his temple. "Haruhi isn't a business deal, Kyoya. She's family!" he spat into the Shadow King's conflicted face. "And if you really cared about her, you…" he cut off, his fists trembling, tears edging at the corners of his eyes. "You wouldn't be such a heartless bastard about it!" he accused. The words seemed to strike something in Kyoya and he silenced. When Tamaki realized that neither Kyoya's hands, nor his words, held him in place, he bit his lip, eyes lowering to the ground, a flicker of guilt passing through them before the former concern took precedence. With one last awkward glance at the Shadow King, he started backwards. Then, before Kyoya could protest, he spun around and sped forward into the dark hall. By the time that Kyoya began to call his name again, he'd already disappeared between the towering rows of dusty volumes.

Another cry pierced his ears, much like the scream from earlier and he cursed to himself as he leapt over a pile of scattered books. He shouldn't have wasted any time.

"HARUHI!"

He finally jetted out into a small opening— the very end of the hall. The tiny nook was vacant of candles, the only light stemming from the main library behind him. The ceiling had sloped inward as he'd moved further down the corridor, he realized, and the room felt more like a storage space than its own chamber. A narrow bookcase leaned against the right wall and a lonely square shaped table surrounded by scattered parchment and empty ink quills perched to his right. He ran his fingers over the wall nearest the table and frayed, olive wallpaper kissed his fingertips. "Haruhi…"

Where could she have disappeared to? Could they be scaling the walls? Did Shadow Hikaru have Spiderman powers? He started to glance upward when a sense of looming dread fell over him. Just out of his periphery he could see it. A floating sneer, eyes wicked, pale lips twisted in a grotsque sneer. "Hikaru," he choked, limbs going cold.

It's a trap. Kyoya's words echoed against the confines of his mind and he shook them away.

Forcing himself to turn toward the floating sneer, he blinked, confused, when the creature blurred out of sight, leaving nothing but a flurry of flesh pink and pajama blue as it vanished into darkness. Squinting, he neared the sudden opening in the wall. When he'd entered the room it had been completely closed off. There hadn't been another chamber. But now he realized that: One. Unlike the other three papered walls, the wall that supported the bookcase comprised of stone. And Two. Said bookcase had suddenly vanished. He moved forward into the gaping black and his eyes widened. Only it hadn't. It had only turned to its side! Somewhere inside him, a brief spurt of glee erupted.

This was just like Scooby Doo! Fingers curving over his chin, he surveyed the revolving bookcase entrance. He didn't even know these existed! How had it been activated?! He scoured the shelves, halfway shrouded by the darkness of the mystery chamber, for some sort of switch when Shadow Hikaru's voice pressed on his ears once more.

"I'm getting away," the demon teased and Tamaki's brow hardened. Swallowing his fear down along with his better sense, he stepped into the utter and complete dark and the bookcase automatically readjusted itself with a low whir. The dark room stood empty once again.

"Suoh-kun!" Nekozawa exploded into the chamber, eyes watery, the beam of Kyoya's flashlight illuminating his way. "SUOH-KUN!"

"I didn't know you cared so much," Shadow Kaoru raised an eyebrow at the obviously distraught senior.

"Suoh-kun is my favorite kohai," Nekozawa sniffed, using his robes to pat at his eyes. "We don't have a lot in common, but he's dazzled by the dark arts!"

"More like mortified," Shadow Kaoru quipped.

"He couldn't have gone anywhere else. This is the only room the path leads to." Kyoya sighed, leaning against the bookcase, his hand pressed against his forehead.

"What do you think they want with him?" Nekozawa whimpered from behind his robes.

"Eliminating the competition, perhaps?" Shadow Kaoru smirked, eyes vigilantly watching Kyoya.

"Perhaps." Kyoya sighed, fingers absentmindedly fiddling with the volumes on the bookcase before turning to Nekozawa. "We need a map of the estate."

Nekozawa started to respond, but Kyoya's mind returned to just a few minutes earlier and he gritted his teeth, temper flaring. Heartless bastard. Well, Tamaki was a clueless moron. Their team was dwindling fast in numbers and he goes and gets himself lured into a trap. He gripped the edge of the bookcase tightly enough for it to splinter, adjusting his glasses so roughly that they rose up his forehead before falling back into place. "That idiot."


	11. Chapter Eleven

Tamaki stood alone in the dark, his own heavy breathing the only assurance that his senses hadn't wholly abandoned him. Nothing but a chasm of pitch black loomed ahead, no flickering candelabras or beaming flashlights to reflect onto his eyes. Raising one hand, he reached forward to grasp nothing but humid, mold scented air. He shifted both arms to either side of him, extending them as far apart as could manage. Before the bends of his elbows could straighten completely, his palms met with cool, dusty stone on either side, sticky webs threading about his fingers. Something quick and spindly scuttled across the back of one hand and he flinched, claustrophobic panic rising in his chest. Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath of the mold tinged humidity. Narrow, dark spaces and a few creepy crawlies wouldn't keep him from his daughter.

"Haruhi!" he called, taking a step forward into the narrow abyss. He listened carefully for a response from her or Hikaru's shadow, but none came. Instead, he focused on his own echo, reverberating loudly somewhere in the distance. His brow furrowed. How had his voice carried in such a small space? It had to open up at some point. And soon.

He carried on, trying his best to ignore the occasional pitter patter of the creatures scaling the walls and the peculiar scurrying underfoot. The farther he travelled, the more his footsteps resounded against the stone. He was nearing some end, some expanse. Would Haruhi be there? Could they have "marked" her already?

The atmosphere's humidity seemed to gradually seep away, leaving an absolute chill in its place. The cold bit through his tank top and pajama pants and he found himself shuddering, fingers gripping his shoulders. Why had the temperature suddenly dropped? And what happened to all of the spiders and rodents? His steps fell more reluctantly than before, breathing shallow.

_This is a trap_ , Kyoya's words slithered across his mind and he heard them clearly for the first time. He paused briefly, his cobweb incased fingers settling at his sides, and stared down the darkness ahead as if it would suck him in and swallow him whole. He couldn't see. He didn't even have a flashlight. Not even a phone. How could he save her like this?

Another jarring scream pierced the void and his head snapped upward as it shrieked terribly all around him before bouncing off of the stone and returning to assault his ears again. A dozen horrific images raced through his head at once and he flung himself forward, blinking through tears at the path he couldn't make out.

"HARUHIIIIIEEEEEEEIIIIIII!" His eyes bulged from his skull, arms flailing helplessly as the ground beneath him gave away and he soared feet forward into darkness. Still screeching, tears flying in ribbons above his head, he clawed for something to break his fall. Nothing but smooth stone and frail cobwebs greeted him on either side of the death canal as he hurtled through. Was this the trap he'd so eagerly stepped into?

_Don't let Haruhi get hurt!_ Hikaru lectured him again from the back of his mind. _I'm holding you responsible if anything happens to her!_

But what could he do now? Images of stained glass and neat wooden pews flashed before his eyes, his mother's smiling face beaming down on him as they kneeled. He began a silent prayer, wind resistance fluttering all around him, when a circle of soft, pale light appeared ahead and steadily grew until he plowed through it, out of the canal and into a puddle of mud and pebbles. He slid roughly over the jagged ground until he managed to shift his weight from his back to his side. From there, he tumbled awkwardly, side over side, finally skidding to a halt in the center of the chamber.

He lay dazed, his entire body numb against the damp pile of earth, arms and legs sprawled on either side. Eyes fluttering shut, he tried to lose himself in that brief moment of shock before the pain settled in. He winced. There it was. It surged through his back in painful waves, starting in his shoulders and bursting into his hips. The pebbles had scratched his skin raw and he was pretty sure he'd developed multiple bruises. He wondered if anything was broken. Breathing shaky, he opened his eyes to gaze up through blurry vision. Lush, swaying foliage hung overhead and a bright white beam transcended down into the dungeon, an ethereal being shimmering beneath it. His guardian angel, perhaps? Had it come to guide him to heaven’s gates?

"No." He shook his head weakly, ignoring the shooting pains in his neck. "Not yet. Have to…" he mumbled. "Haruhi…"

"It's okay, senpai." The ethereal being stepped forward from the heavenly light and approached him through the green foliage, its light, bright blue tee and red capris shimmering.

His eyes widened. "Ha- Har-!"

"I'm fine." Haruhi smiled reassuringly, the warmth reaching her eyes.

"But you…" he started, confused, as she kneeled down beside him. His hand reached up tremblingly to catch hers and she took it, threading her own fingers gently through his. "Hikaru's shadow…"

"Don't worry," she whispered softly. "You can relax now."

He nodded, the light blinding him. So bright. Too bright. He started to drift off, Haruhi's glowing smile the last image on his retinas, when quick footsteps sounded behind him. His eyes shot open and, for the first time since he'd entered the secret door behind the bookcase, he saw clearly.

The lush foliage hadn't been lush at all, but rather thick, pale yellow vines protruding and sinking from the soaring, rounded ceilings of the basement. The angelic beam proved to be nothing more than a tiny, barred opening in the stone above where moonlight shone through. He wondered what his vision of Haruhi had amounted to. He supposed he could take his pick of the three kitten sized rats roaming casually about the dank tunnels. Still nostalgic for his own pain-induced fantasy, he forced himself to turn to his side where someone swiftly raced from the mouth of one of the many gaping tunnels.

"Tama-chan!" it cried, bunny ears flapping from its hood.

He gasped, shooting up at a 90-degree angle, despite the pain. "Hani-senpai?!"

The boy stopped just ahead of him, his breathing heavy as he reeled over, using a stone wall to support himself. Mud rose up around the pink feet of his onesie, blackening them completely.

"They put you down here too?!" Hani finally gazed up to see him, tears brimming at the corners of his eyes as he examined the battered blond. "Did they beat you up, Tama-chan?!" He ran for him, hands tackling his scratched, dirtied arms in concern.

"No, I just fell." Tamaki gave him a weak grin, cringing as Hani's thumbs pressed harshly into a forming bruise. So this was a holding place and Hikaru's shadow had lured him here. His grin disintegrated, bangs swooping over his eyes. Kyoya had been right. Of course he'd been right. Was he ever wrong? Groaning, he pressed a palm against his forehead and pulled his legs to his chest, a blend of guilt and frustration roiling inside. "Mori-senpai's shadow trapped you here?"

"Mmhm," Hani sniffed, rubbing at his damp eyes with his fists. "He said he'd be back for me later." His shoulders trembled lightly. "But it's cold! And dark! And there's no cake!"

"Did he try anything…" Tamaki started, eyes peering nervously at Hani from under his bangs. "Weird?"

"Weird?" Hani frowned, wide eyes blinking. "No."

Tamaki's heart leapt. "I see," he nodded, the corners of his lips stretching upward, arms loosening around his legs. If Mori's shadow hadn't marked Hani yet and simply deposited him here, that meant… "Haruhi might be down here too!" he gushed tearfully, his fists pumping up so suddenly that Hani flinched. "If we find her, we can escape together before anything terrible happens!"

"Right!" Hani nodded resolutely. "In fact, I'm sure she's down here, Tama-chan!"

"That's the spirit, Hani-senpai!" Tamaki half-cheered, half-whined as he pushed his aching body to its feet, nearly toppling face forward into the dirt.

"Because I heard her just a minute ago," Hani finished, helping to steady him to his feet.

"Eh?!" Tamaki bellowed, eyes going wide. "Why didn't you say anything, senpai?!"

"WAAAH!" Hani cried. "I saw you first and I wanted to make sure you were okay!" His brow creased with worry as Tamaki stumbled again, catching himself on the tunnel wall. "Are you sure you're okay?!"

Tamaki nodded reassuringly, teeth gritted. "I'm fine." He waved him off before gazing up to survey the immense network of tunnels before them. The small section that the canal had spilled him into seemed to be the only area graced with light. The rest of the basement likely led underneath the estate itself where the moon's shine could not travel. Six separate arched openings presented themselves, only one lit by sconces. Overhead pipes and dark brick decorated each corridor's entrance, a giant spray-painted Beelzenef towering over them all. He grimaced. Of course, Nekozawa of all people took joy in being somewhere like this… "Where did you hear Haruhi, Hani-senpai?"

Hani bit his lower lip anxiously as he started away from the well lit corridor and toward the pitch black tunnel at the opposite end. "This way."

Attempting to mask his own fear, Tamaki smiled down at him. "It's alright, Hani-senpai." He stretched his fingers out and curled them around Hani's. "We'll hold hands!" He flinched a bit upon touching the cool flesh, worried eyes falling on his senior. Had he been in this freezing dungeon the entire time since Mori's shadow had kidnapped him?

Hani shuddered to himself as they crossed the threshold into the tunnel, a low dripping noise echoing from somewhere in the darkness. "Your hand is warm, Tama-chan."

"Well," He squeezed at Hani's cold fingers. "You know what they say!" He winked with a smug grin though he doubting the other boy could see it in the dark. "Warm hands, warm heart!"

Hani glanced up at him, brow furrowed. "I thought it was cold hands, warm heart."

"Is it?" Tamaki laughed absentmindedly, his thoughts traveling elsewhere. "Mori-senpai and the twins went looking for you," he turned to him, though he could barely make out his silhouette. "Did you seem them at all?"

"No," Hani answered and he could hear the concern. "Is everyone else okay?"

Tamaki paused, recalling his last conversation with Kyoya, his shoulders leaden. "I think so," he responded quietly. What a shameful night to be 'Daddy'. First his purity as a father had been called into question and now his loyalty to 'Mommy'. Perhaps, he wasn't as good a family man as he fancied himself? Could his friends ever forgive him? He bit his lower lip.

"I said something I shouldn't ha—"

The scream started again, louder than before, shrill and blatantly distressed. The more he heard it, the more he found something vaguely odd about it, but before he could place the anomaly, Hani tore loose from his hold.

"Hani-senpai!"

"Come on, Tama-chan!" Hani raced ahead of him into the dark. "We're close now!"

"Wait!" Tamaki cried before dashing after him to the best of his ability. His limbs ached desperately, each tendon begging him to stop, but he carried on, clenching his teeth through the pain. His shoulder involuntarily bumped against the wall and he propelled himself forward, only to run into the opposite wall. Wincing, his body wracked with pain, he lifted both arms up curiously to find that the wide expansive corridor that they had entered just minutes ago had shrank considerably. The sickening memory of the area behind the bookcase clouded over him. Was there a second chute ahead? An even deeper dungeon to fall into?

"Come on, Tama-chan!" Hani called from ahead and he followed, moving forward with each palm scaling the walls.

"Why is it so narrow?!" he groaned. Could Haruhi really be hiding in this small space? He knew she was tiny herself, but—

"TAMA-CHAN!" Hani cried suddenly and alarm jolted through Tamaki, his adrenaline racing.

"Hani-senpai!" He pushed through the corridor at the quickest pace that he could manage, limbs slapping and bruising against the dark brick. "Hani—"

His breath hitched mid-call as he tripped over something, arms flailing forward. Half fearing an open abyss again, he cried out, but his palms met instead with cold, smooth iron. Stairs, he realized. Reaching to his feet, he grasped the object that he'd tripped over. He couldn't make it out in the dark, but it held a copious amount of soft stuffing. With arms, legs and two lengthy ears. He swallowed hard. Usa-chan. His eyes narrowed, remembering how Hani's demon had settled on "babysitting" the abandoned plushie. Did that mean the shadow had been waiting for Hani-senpai here in the dark?

"Hani-senpai!" He called with cupped hands, his voice carrying on the stairwell, far above the basement level. Nothing but echoes. Dammit! Why couldn't he keep up with him?!

"Haruhi?!" he tried, breathing shallow, his heart thundering so harshly that he could feel it in his hands and throat. Stuffing the bunny into his waistband, he glanced back toward the narrow opening he'd just come from to see nothing but pitch black. No sign of Hani. The stairs held even less promise. Like the tunnel, there was no lighting. And wouldn't it take him farther away from Haruhi and Hani? Was this just a secret door he'd stumbled upon while the others were still trapped somewhere underground? He had to be sure.

Wiping a slew of sweat and dirt from his brow, he started backwards when a familiar sound lifted goose bumps from his skin, his heart rate building once more.

Shadow Hikaru's laughter seemed to encircle and suffocate him, pressing in past his ears and into his mind, sticking gruesomely there. He shook his head, eyes shut tightly, as if to rid himself of the sound, but it only persisted. Soon Haruhi's screams blended into the cruel cacophony, ringing from some place above. His eyes jolted open. The stairs.

Lurching from the tunnel entrance and back into the stairwell, he all but threw himself onto the steps, narrowly missing a stone wall. He caught himself, realizing that the stairs formed a spiral upward. Using one hand to steady himself against the round pillar in the center, he hurried from step to step. As the screams increased more and more in volume, the laughter did as well, drowning out his own footsteps and the whistling of wind through the aging brick. His breathing grew quicker and harsher until it came out in wheezes as he ascended round after round of the spiral. Steadily, his running gave way to stumbling, his stumbling to crawling. Did this staircase go on forever?

His foot missed a step and he tripped, teetering several steps backwards, his knee jamming into the edge of a stair. Wincing, he struggled to lift himself, but his legs gave out, rising and then lapsing back against the iron. The demon's laughter taunted him cruelly and Haruhi's screams condemned him for not being quicker, stronger. Staggering on the edge of madness, he thrust his fingers through his bangs, a choked cry he barely recognized passing through his lips to join the tortured discord.

"STOP IT!" Tamaki demanded into the nothingness. "PLEASE STOP!" he begged, his voice breaking.

Surprisingly, it did, the stairwell going completely silent, nothing but his own frantic whimpering remaining.

Why had he left his group? Why had they ever split up at all? Eventually, they would have succeeded all together. And they never would have lost Hani-senpai in the dark. Mori-senpai and Hani-senpai were strong. And the twins would huddle with him when he was scared. Nekozawa knew all about the dark arts. Haruhi would pick up on the small details. And Kyoya… He sobbed, tears streaming freely down his cheeks.

He always preached togetherness, but he had endangered Haruhi and abandoned his friends when they needed one another the most. What did you call someone who did something like that?

"You complete dumbass."

Tamaki gasped and he slowly gazed up through bloodshot eyes to see a peeved Kyoya glowering down on him, the flashlight centered directly into his face.

"Are you done with the solo act?" The Shadow King sighed heavily, adjusting his glasses. "You're lucky we figured out how to—"

"Kyoya!" Tamaki cried, tears gushing, snot edging from his nose as he threw his arms around him. "Kyoya, I'm so sorry!"

"Get off," Kyoya grunted, prying the blond away.

"You're not a heartless bastard!" Tamaki sobbed into the shoulder of his grey button up. "I know you ca— OW!" he hissed as Kyoya swatted him over the head with the flashlight.

"Come on," Kyoya sighed, gripping his arm to support him when he started to stumble down to the steps again. "Nekozawa and Kaoru's shadow are waiting downstairs."

"But we can't go back now!" Tamaki pointed up the stairwell. "We're at least half way through and Haruhi's up there! I heard her!"

"You can hardly walk," Kyoya draped Tamaki's arm over his shoulders. "Are you sure you want to—"

"Nekozawa-senpai!" Tamaki bellowed down the dark spiral. "Come upstairs!" With that, he tugged at Kyoya's hand. "Come on!"

Kyoya sighed, but nodded regardless. Step by step, they found their way up the staircase- the blue flashlight a much appreciated addition. With it, they inferred that there were only a few more rounds of the spiral. Soon the promise of yellow orange light greeted them from the landing.

"Alright, Kyoya!" Tamaki began, eyes ready, his old determination returning. "Since Kaoru's shadow isn't here yet, we'll go with my plan!" He turned to him. "You pretend to be your shadow demon and demand Hikaru's shadow demon to return Haruhi!" he counseled, index finger waving. "Then when Kaoru's shadow catches up, he can take over!"

Kyoya just frowned at him, one eyebrow raised curiously, but he didn't argue. When they finally reached the landing, they found a round topped splintering wooden door with iron black plates, two torches on either side. Easing himself from Kyoya's shoulder, Tamaki exploded through, nearly stumbling and tripping into the chamber. "HARUHI!"

The small, round room greeted him silently, a study of some sort. Scrolls and volumes of all sorts in a variety of unknown languages scattered across the writing desk. A dusty, crimson and gold Persian carpet enveloped most of the floor, a cat eye insignia etched into the center. A fireplace crackled opposite a large, ancient organ of some sort, the scent of burnt wood filling his nose. It might have been cozy in any other setting.

A low muffled noise emanated from further within the room and he noticed a steel door adrift just beyond the fireplace. Drawing a deep breath, he limped toward it, careful not to trip on the carpet. Leaning into the narrow opening, his eyes adjusting to the dark of the chamber, he spotted a thin silhouette to the left. Chains linked around its wrists and pooled upon the cushion beneath. It fidgeted nervously upon the chaise, eyes continuously averting toward the right of the room.

"Mmmmph!" Its eyes went wide upon spotting him.

Tamaki gasped. _Haruhi!_

Forgetting any intention of discretion, he rushed past the steel door, nearly knocking a candelabra to the ground. Hurrying past the walls of chains, he careened toward her and fell to his knees with a wince, his hands falling upon her shoulders.

"Haruhi!" he nearly sobbed in a mixture of empathy and joy at seeing his daughter again. He lifted his fingers to cradle her cheeks. "Are you okay?!"

"Mmmmph!" she cried through a mouthful of black cloth, the end of which had been wrapped around her mouth and secured at the nape of her neck. She shook her head repeatedly.

"It's alright," he comforted tremblingly, his fingers finding the ends of the cloth where they knotted together.

"MMMMPH!" She shook her head rapidly.

"I know," he pressed, trying to keep his tears at bay, a mixture of compassion and anger swirling in his chest. "Just give me," He looped his index finger through the knot. "One second."

The tie fell from her lips and he yanked the gag from her mouth.

"Senp—" she started immediately, exploding into a coughing fit instead while he fumbled with the shackles at her wrists. "Senpai, no! It's a—"

Her speech muffled once again and the shackles snapped away from Tamaki's hands. He jerked up to see her being drawn backwards, dark mist teeming and materializing into slender fingers over her lips.

"Hikaru!" Tamaki seethed and attempted to jump to his feet, but he only stumbled sideways against the stone ground.

"You didn't think it'd be that easy, did you?" Shadow Hikaru smirked, his chin resting on Haruhi's shoulder from behind. "How did you plan on getting rid of these?" He raised the chains that dripped from Haruhi's left wrist in one hand and clutched them firmly. Tamaki let out a small whimper as they cracked and disintegrated in his grip. He opened the hand and fine, dark sand spilled from his palm and drizzled to the ground. "Not like that?"

Tamaki just continued to gape as he pulverized the second shackle and Shadow Hikaru scoffed.

"And we call this guy 'president'," he joked into Haruhi's ear and she wrenched away, incensing Tamaki again.

"Don't touch her!" He lunged forward to grab her arm and Hikaru's shadow simply drew further back, causing him to fall, palms forward, to the ground.

"Don't act like you actually care," the shadow snarled derisively down at his kneeling form, hazel eyes cold. "You couldn't even tell the difference between your 'daughter' and a recording."

"A recording?" Tamaki blinked.

It waved the twins' phone about tauntingly and pressed a button marked 'Play' on the screen. The chilling scream that had tortured him for the past half hour boomed from the speakers and he went pale.

"Didn't it sound strange to you, 'MiLord'?" Shadow Hikaru teased, pressing 'Play' over and over again as Tamaki and Haruhi both winced at the sound. The demon turned to sneer at the phone. "I guess it is pretty authentic." He planted a chaste kiss against a tiny mar on Haruhi's shoulder. "I had to scratch her up a bit to get it."

Tamaki started forward with a rage filled cry only to face plant again.

"You don't look good," Shadow Hikaru frowned, dropping the phone back into his pants pocket. "Maybe you should lie down." He waved his arm and a gust of black mist swept Tamaki backwards toward the entrance. He cried out as his back collided squarely with the stone just beside the door and he slid down to the uneven ground. Gritting his teeth, he glanced up to see his best friend shining the flashlight down on him from behind the steel door.

"Kyoya!" he forced through the pain. If he could just hold out long enough to rescue Haruhi… "Are Nekozawa and Kaoru's shadow here yet?"

"No." Kyoya crossed his arms.

Tamaki nodded. "Then we have to enact the plan now!" he whispered, pushing upward, his entire body quivering as he hoisted himself to a standing position against the wall. "You know what to do."

Kyoya gave a curt nod. "Fine." Swinging the door further open, he walked into the room. Haruhi drew in a deep breath. Hikaru stared at him expectantly.

"I'm Kyoya's shadow," Kyoya declared rather unceremoniously, raising a hand to adjust his glasses.

"Hi Kyoya's shadow," Shadow Hikaru returned with a smirk.

"And you're here to take Haruhi back!" Tamaki whispered, feeding him his lines a bit too loudly from behind.

Kyoya refused the advice, his eyes falling on the commoner, who glared knives back at him in return, and then back to Hikaru's shadow.

"So you found my captive?"

"Yeah," the shadow smirked.

"Freed her?" he motioned to the destroyed chains.

It nodded.

"And lured Tamaki to this hideout?"

"Yep."

"Than there's nothing left for us to discuss." Kyoya's features hardened, the hand falling from his glasses.

Tamaki watched with baited breath. Now was his chance to sneak Haruhi away!

"She's yours."

Tamaki's mouth fell open.

Sneering, Shadow Hikaru lovingly hoisted Haruhi into his arms despite her struggles.

"Wait!" She pushed against his shoulders, fighting the embrace. When it was clear that her protests did nothing, she turned wide eyes on Tamaki. “Senpai, ru--”

"Haruhi," Kyoya sighed, the ghost of a smirk edging on his lips as he reached out to take her by the chin, "I’m afraid it’s time for you to leave now.”

“Kyyyuya-senphhh--” she struggled ardently to speak through his hold.

He only clasped her cheek tighter. “If you'd played along, I would have never involved Hikaru in the first place."

Shadow Hikaru's jaw set at the intimate motion and Kyoya released her, stepping out of the way to let them move past and narrowly avoiding her kicking feet. "Perhaps you'll be more accommodating toward me in the future," he called after her.

"What would you need her for in the future?!" Hikaru's shadow snapped before breathing a command softly into Haruhi's ear. She instantly collapsed against his shoulder, her prying arms going limp.

Kyoya simply shrugged, a secretive smile on his lips. "Keep her closeby," he advised. "The humans and Tamaki's shadow will be looking for her."

"WHAT THE HELL?!" Tamaki exclaimed, using the wall to support himself as he struggled after them. "They're getting away!" He felt a firm hand on his shoulder, preventing him from moving any further and he snapped around frantically. "Kyoya!" he cried, tugging at his best friend's shoulder. "He's carrying her… bridal... style…" his words dipped off when he caught the Shadow King's eyes, cold and empty beneath the glass.

"Um," Tamaki scratched nervously at his bangs as Kyoya advanced on him, cornering him against the stone. "Don't you think you're getting a little carried away with this?" He knew Kyoya had demonic tendencies, but this was ridiculous.

A soft, drone vibrated around them and Tamaki flinched. "Wh—" He tensed, realizing that the hum exuded from his best friend. Kyoya's neck crooked forward, his hair falling over the glasses, a crooked line slicing up his lips.

"Kyoya?" Tamaki attempted to ask, but it came out a whimper.

"You make this too easy," Kyoya sighed, the cruel smirk still playing on his lips as he lifted the flashlight and Tamaki turned to examine the metallic blue varnish. "It's not even the same color."

"Wh…" Tamaki started, his tongue going dry as Kyoya stepped closer, leaving him no where to retreat, but cold stone. He recalled Kyoya bounding after him in the library, grey eyes exasperated behind his glasses, the black flashlight in hand. _Black_. He pressed himself against the wall, raising one trembling finger accusingly. "You're one of them," he squeaked.

"Good job," Kyoya's shadow congratulated him, reaching forward to press cold fingers against the blond's temples. Tamaki seized him by the wrists briefly before his hands suddenly went limp and fell away, eyelids fluttering shut.

"So he finally figured it out," a cold, but child-like voice spoke from the doorway and Kyoya glanced down to see Hani's shadow peering at them, arms crossed over his onesie, the ankles and feet covered in soot. Reaching forward, he yanked the stuffed rabbit from Tamaki's waistband. "I thought he might catch on when I dropped Usa-chan, but he's so stupid he didn't even realize I was the one he was following in the first place," he groaned eying Tamaki's limp form disdainfully as it slid down toward chamber floor. He started to tip sideways when Kyoya’s shadow looped an arm around his waist to steady the fall.

"You're right," Hani cuddled the muddied Usa-chan to his chest. "That was too easy."

The taller shadow lowered Tamaki to the ground, letting him rest against the stone. "He's so predictable, it's pathetic," he mused, reaching down to gently brush a strand of blond from the boy's eyes, the worry lines on his brow finally softening in slumber. An affectionate smirk curved over the demon's lips and he gave a dry sigh. "Idiot."


	12. Chapter Twelve

Meanwhile…

 

 

Consciousness found Hani slowly, the calming slosh of water caressing his ears. The sweet scent of lychee perfume wafted into his nostrils, accompanied by a thick, humid haze. His skin felt warm all over, the sensation so soothing, he longed to embrace it and sink back into slumber. A sharp ache stung his cheek and he reached up to press his fingers against the skin. Something cold and jarring immediately assaulted the arm he’d lifted and his eyes shot open.

 

_A bathtub_ , he deduced, hazel eyes falling upon his own dripping hand. The tub itself was a metallic grey, curving upward where his back perched and then again where his feet lay. It stood on four decorative legs, detached from the wall. Lychee scented bubbles formed mountains all around his shoulders, a few of them breaking free and floating about his head. The long, narrow bathroom shone dimly in the candlelight from the iron sconces lining the counter across from the tub. A tall man stood, shoulders slumped, before the wide, ebony framed mirror that scaled the entire length of the counter, his hands working dedicatedly at something over a stone basin.

 

Fear immediately seized Hani as memory shards pierced through the shadowy haze that clouded over his mind; Memories of facing his own snarling, cake-starved demon and then being abruptly carried off by Mori’s. After Mori’s shadow had carried him away, his recollections seemed to edge off, leaving nothing but a black fog. He studied the man whose back was turned to him vigilantly. Was this his cousin or the doppelganger?

 

As if reading his thoughts, Mori spun around, an unexpectedly pleasant smile gracing his lips.

 

“Mitsukuni,” he spoke lovingly before moving forward, a small yellow object in hand. Beaming, he placed the rubber duck, bottom first, upon the water’s surface and gave it a squeeze.

 

Hani frowned, confused, as the duck gave a high pitched squeak before lazily floating his way. This didn’t seem very… demonly of him. That was a good sign, right? And, if he knew his cousin, Mori would have immediately pursued him after he’d been kidnapped. Was it possible that he’d already been saved?

 

“Takashi—” He started when a lengthy finger eased against his lips, silencing him. A toy submarine, a plastic octopus and a bunny floatation device plopped down to join him in the water.

 

“WAAAH!” Hani’s eyes sparkled with glee at the toys, unable to help himself. “SO CUTE!”

 

“Mm,” Mori smiled, his expression calm, almost completely still, as he removed a pink sponge from the iron latch of the tub and descended upon Hani, dipping the sponge through the lychee bubbles and into the water.

 

“Um…” Hani started, perplexed as the sponge emerged to wipe gently at his temple, narrowing one eye as water dripped over his brow. He very much doubted that the real Mori would pause in the middle of a demon ambush to give him a bubble bath. But that meant… “What are you doing?” he asked nervously.

 

“I have to get behind your ears, Mitsukuni,” the shadow explained as he worked the sponge gingerly around Hani’s right earlobe. The water casually pitter pattered in the background as if nothing were the matter with this picture in the least.

 

“That’s not what I meant,” Hani said as the sponge slipped from his ears and found his neck, drawing a ‘V’ repeatedly with his collarbone in the center. Though perhaps a bit delayed, he realized now that he sat completely naked in the tub. Paling despite the heat, his gaze darted to the counter top where his onesie rested neatly upon the black granite. He swallowed hard.

 

“I think I’m clean, Takashi,” he pressed when the demon failed to respond, instead concentrating on scrubbing the pits of Hani’s arms to the best of its ability. The motion startled his funny bone and his shoulders bunched, breath hitching with the beginnings of unintentional laughter. The movement in his right cheek caused the sharp ache to sting there again and he immediately reached up to touch the spot, his fingers tracing a thin, sensitive line there, the size of a thumbnail. Hani’s eyes grew wide and he started backward with nothing but cold, hard metal to greet him.

 

“Did you mark me?” he cried, his fingers seizing the curved sides of the tub, eyes welling with tears. “Is Takashi going to turn into a shadow now?!”

 

“Shhhh,” The demon leaned in, pressing the apex of his thumb against Hani’s lips. “I’m Takashi.”

 

“That’s no-!”

 

“We have to finish your bath, Mitsukuni,” the shadow spoke calmly as if he were simply a patient parent goading a petulant child. He finished at the pits of Hani’s arms and moved the sponge slowly down his side until it vanished beneath the bubbles.

 

Hani started to push his arm away when the man leaned in and planted a soft, tender kiss upon the mark on his cheek. His limbs immediately fell limp, the kiss melting in through the tear and burning down his neck and through him to explode somewhere within. The sensation left his mouth agape and numbed his skin, though it wasn’t entirely unpleasant. He felt the soft fibers of the sponge slithering slowly up his thigh and his eyes changed from dazed to mortified, dread seizing him.

 

“I don’t want to take a bath,” he managed to mumble between tingling lips.

 

The shadow didn’t assuage, his hands moving steadily up the boy’s thigh, tongue swiping in one slick motion over his cheek.

 

“I said…” Hani grunted as the peculiar wave crashed over his senses once more, tempting several less cultured noises from his throat. “I don’t want to take…” Determined to resist the force of the demon’s spell, he seized the submarine toy so roughly that its sails plunged painfully into his palms, distracting him from the onslaught on his senses. “A BATH!” Finally, he rammed the submarine with all of his strength square into the center of Shadow Mori’s robotic expression.

 

The demon barely reacted, only lowering the sponge into the water. The submarine tumbled unceremoniously to clatter upon the black tile, leaving nothing but water and suds to drip from the demon’s unmoving features, locked in calm guardian mode. He sat that way for a while, kneeling frozen over the tub and Hani grasped the edges harshly, fearing he might pounce unexpectedly into life at any moment.

 

But when he finally moved, it was not violently. Smiling mechanically, the shadow reached just behind the tub to pull a platter of triple layered strawberry cake from his side. Hani watched, bewildered, as he used a large cake knife to slice a small piece, balancing it between his fingers. He lifted the pastry toward Hani’s lips.

 

“Say ‘ah’,” he prodded.

 

Hani swallowed hard as the moist, yellow cake drifted toward his mouth invitingly, adorned with white icing and assorted minced strawberries. It looked so good! The sweet aroma reached his nostrils quickly in the steamy smog and his eyelashes fluttered. Maybe if he just had a bite…

 

“Mm…” he wriggled about as if faced with a life threatening decision.

 

“Don’t worry, Mitsukuni.” The Shadow whispered lovingly against his ear, pulling the velcro coverlet from a utility belt at his side. Hani’s eyes widened at the vast assortment of toothbrushes, floss and paste. “I came prepared.”

 

“Wh-Where did you get tho—”

 

“MITSUKUNI!”

 

Hani snapped around to find Mori hovering behind the shadow, the cake knife in hand. Before it could turn to face him he brought the silver plate down so roughly that it dented over the demon’s head. “RUN!”

 

Hani immediately scrambled out of the water, grabbing a handful of cake in the process. Snatching the onesie from the black granite, he started for door. “Come on, Takashi!” he called, hoping to hear his cousin’s footsteps just behind him, when it started. He gripped the dark wooden threshold of the bathroom door tautly as the demon emitted a low, inhuman growl from somewhere deep within, its shoulders stiffening. Mori still hovered over it with a glare so fiery, it didn’t suit him. He started backwards, still clutching half of the now decimated cake knife. His eyes darted about the darkened bathroom, perhaps seeking a better weapon, when they landed on Hani.

 

“I told you to run!”

 

Hani still gripped the wooden threshold, his fingernails splintering it. “Takashi…”

 

They were out of time. The demon leapt quickly to his feet, launching a hand out to catch Mori in the stomach. Mori grunted lowly, clutching his abdomen and slipping sideways into the bath water.

 

“No!” Hani exclaimed, but he only called attention to himself. Spinning about, the demon centered its sharp grey pupils on him again and he took a step back instinctively.

 

They stood, eyes locked, predator and prey, until Mori dove out of the water, tackling his double from behind.

 

“Mitsukuni!” he warned again, trying his best to hold the demon, though he might as well have tried  subduing a tank engine. “Remember what Nekozawa said! He can’t kill me!”

 

Hani bit his lip, hands trembling. “Takashi…”

 

“Take the cake and go!” Mori grunted, meeting his gaze.

 

The pleading in his eyes, rather than his words, reached Hani and he gave a slight nod. Never turning from the scene near the tub, he gathered the cake and his onesie securely in his arms and raced out of the room into the dark hallway, going no where in particular. He wasn’t sure where the others were, but it shouldn’t have been that difficult to find them, right? And then they could all team up and return before…

 

The sound of splashing and then a loud crack echoed from the bathroom and into the corridor.

 

Before…

 

A pained groan followed and Hani froze. He couldn’t leave him like this. Mori always stood by him. He never complained. Not when he wanted to watch children’s movies or when he asked him to tuck him in like a child. Not when he whined about a stomach ache after far too many sweets or decided to forgo his kendo namesake to join the Host Club. He had accepted him and supported him through every strange quirk, every stranger adventure. And he had enough energy to give him that gentle smile at the end of the day. Hani’s eyes watered. How could he even think of walking away from him now? Besides, what good would protecting him from the shadow realm do if the demon beat him into a coma anyway?

 

Placing the cake down just before the bathroom entrance, he wrestled into the pink onesie, pausing when something solid brushed against his thigh. His eyes widened. The candle. A small grin curved over his lips as he remembered Tamaki handing it to him just before he attempted to face his own shadow. Pulling the bunny hood over his head with solemn resolve, he stepped back into the dull candlelight, eyes ready. Mori struggled back first against the mirror, his shadow straddling him into the counter, fingers tight around his throat. Its features were completely drained of humanity now, smile lines twisting jaggedly up the livid paleness of its face, its irises deep black and dilated. Mori whittled in and out of consciousness, his eyes rolling back, a bright red smear on his bottom lip.

 

“USA-CHAN KICK!” Hani sailed through the air, one foot extended at the demon. It barely had time to glance upward as the side of Hani’s foot slammed against its forehead. Stunned, it staggered backward and Hani fell against the counter, curling his leg up to cradle the injured foot.

 

“Ow…” he pouted, massaging gently at the bone. “So hard…” The demon’s body hadn’t felt so solid when it had carried him away or bathed him. Still hissing in pain, he glanced up to see Mori gazing at him, still leaning against the broken mirror.

 

“Mitsukuni…” His head drooped low. “I failed you. I should have told you to brush…”

 

“Takashi no! Don’t listen to anything it says,” Hani shouted, gripping the candle tightly behind his back. The demon had righted itself again, his arms affectionately stretching out for him.

 

“Mitsukuni.” It lurched toward him like a zombie.

 

Biting back his panic and ignoring the pain in his foot, he launched forward again— this time with the candle extended forward. When it met with the demon’s chest, the skin and clothing there dissolved into black mist and immediately repelled from the flame, clouding around Hani’s wrist. It reminded him of Shadow Kaoru’s reaction in the showroom. The demon hissed in pain, rearing backward. Hani started to plunge the candle further into the hard skin and bone when Shadow Mori lashed out, smacking him straight across the cheek.

 

A high-pitched ringing pierced the ear closest to the blow and he staggered back, his mental facilities abandoning him for the moment.

 

“Mitsukuni!” Mori grunted, attempting to push himself from the broken mirror, but cringing immediately and resuming his position against it.

 

Hani tumbled to the grey tile, the back of his head just missing the tub as his elbows met and scraped against the floors. He winced, his lips folding inward and the taste of blood mingled with the salty dryness on his tongue. When his vision cleared enough so that he caught the hungry eyes hovering just overhead, he raised the candle again, his fingers trembling. The demon immediately caught him by the wrist, squeezing harshly until his fingers twitched and it fell from his grasp, rolling against the bathroom wall. Hani let out a defeated groan.

 

“I’m sorry, Mitsukuni,” the demon whispered, the sadness in its eyes almost palpable, as it cradled him gently by the cheek thumbing over the mark. Hani felt the familiar shiver radiate through him and he cringed.

 

“Please…” he begged, tears welling up.

 

“That won’t kill me,” the shadow informed him, an edge of sympathy in the words. He ran a gentle hand down his cheek and neck before stopping at the first button of his onesie. “Shall we resume your bath now?”

 

“HEY HANI-SENPAI!” Two voices shouted and both their heads snapped around to see the twins standing at the bathroom door, the triple strawberry cake in-between them. “Is this yours?”

 

“H- Hika-chan!” Hani’s eyes went wide, the wetness subsiding. “Kao-chan! Is it really you?!”

 

They both turned to one another to exchange glances and Hani caught little magic marker king crowns sketched at the base of their necks before they confronted him again. Only Tamaki would use an identification method like that… Something in his chest released, flooding with hope.

 

“So,” Hikaru frowned.

 

“Is it yours?” Kaoru continued.

 

They both let the cake sway a bit in their grasp. And Hani’s brows clenched, confused. The demon’s eyes set dangerously, its lips unhinging into a frown.

 

Hani caught the flicker of fear dash through both their expressions, but they held fast to the act.

 

“Well, if no one’s going to eat it…” Hikaru shrugged as casually as he could manage before taking a fistful of cake and tossing it onto the bathroom floor. Hani gasped, his hands flying to his lips. Even in a dire situation like this, that was no way to treat a good cake! To add insult to injury, Kaoru launched out with his turquoise house shoe and smashed the pastry into a dirt tinged pancake upon the tile.

 

“Kao-chan!” Hani cried, his voice trembling with tears. Shadow Mori grunted, its brows arching upwards, upper lip snarled. The Hitachiins paled, backing away as it rose slowly to its feet, fists at its sides.

 

Despite their pale pallor, Kaoru delve another hand, tremblingly, into the cake and crushed it between his fingers. Hani made a low, regretful noise as it eroded toward the ground. Shadow Mori grunted like a bull.

 

The screams nearly leaping from their throats, Hikaru and Kaoru backed into the dark hallway, taking the cake with them. The demon then soared across the bathroom with unnatural speed and they turned briskly on their heels, scrambling away and disappearing down the corridor, shrieking all the while. Hani stared after them for a few moments before lifting himself slowly from the bathroom tile, balancing himself on the edge of the tub. Wincing, he leaned down to pluck the candle from a puddle on the floor. Miraculously, it still burned. The spot where the demon hit him ached along with his wrist and ankle, but nevertheless, he made his way toward Mori, whom still slumped against the broken mirror like a tattered doll.

 

“Takashi,” he whispered, averting his eyes from his cousin’s split lip and shaking at his shoulders. “We have to go before he comes back!”

 

Mori sat there for a few seconds, letting the words settle into him. Finally, he nodded and allowed Hani to help ease him off of the counter and away from the mirror. They moved into the hallway jerkily, Hani clutching his hand and holding fast to his shoulder to support him while leading them in the opposite direction of the twins and Mori’s shadow. The corridors offered no comfort, the only light spilling from the few bedrooms they passed. After a mere minute, Mori collapsed downward and Hani eased him into one of the gloomy chambers. Ignoring the four poster bed and armchair in the corner, he found a small, vacant closet space and guided Mori inside of it. Following behind him, he eased the door silently closed. Releasing a deep sigh, he kneeled beside his cousin, eyes concerned as he hugged his knees to his chest.

 

“Do you think something’s broken?” he asked fearfully.

 

Mori sat in silence, his back against the wall, arms hovering over his parted knees. His eyes traced somberly over the floor of the closet. “No,” he finally answered, his head moving slightly upward as if he would face him in the dim light of the cursed candle, but he didn’t. “Are you okay?” he asked in a weighty tone.

 

Hani nodded. “I’m fine.”

 

“I would never-” Mori breathed abruptly, his fists tightening. “I don’t think of you… like tha—”

 

“I know,” Hani smiled, eyes softening, as he reached out to grasp his hand. “That demon was a pervert, ne?” he giggled to lighten the mood, but Mori just continued his somber stare into darkness.

 

Hani’s features sobered. “That wasn’t you, Takashi.”

 

“Mm,” Mori nodded, his tongue running anxiously over the broken skin of his lip. There was a short pause when he started again. “But I couldn’t protect you.”

 

Hani massaged at his hand. “You did protect me,” he pushed reassuringly though it was difficult to catch in the dark. “You distracted him and I got away, remember?”

 

“But you came back,” Mori frowned. “Why didn’t you take the cake and—”

 

“It wasn’t about the stupid cake!” Hani shook his head rapidly, tears flying. “I couldn’t leave you!”

 

Mori’s gaze finally rose to meet his, his expression so shocked that Hani’s heart could have shattered into pieces. Instead, he gave his hand a comforting squeeze and leaned forward.

 

“There’ll always be more cake, Takashi,” he told him gently with a faint laugh. “I can’t replace you.” Mori’s lips quivered slightly and Hani flung his arms around his neck, enveloping him in a tight hug.

 

“I love you,” he whispered, tears edging at the corners of his eyes.

 

Mori didn’t respond at first, other than to flinch a bit at the pressure on his abused tendons, the initial surprise still lingering. Hani rested his cheek into the crook of his neck and a slow warmth began to settle over the numbness. He awkwardly moved his arms to drape over Hani’s back until the movement became natural, a smile gracing his bloodied lips.

 

“Mitsukuni.”

 

The light from the candle suddenly flared violently and Hani gasped, nearly dropping it to the closet floor. Still in Mori’s embrace, he extended the candle outward from himself, and they both watched with wide eyes as the flame drifted sideways toward the closet door as if a magnet beckoned it. The flame began to swirl in a narrow funnel, lengthening, its tip brushing against the dark wood.

 

“Mitsukuni…” Mori reached up as Hani pulled from the embrace, one hand intertwining with his, the other easing the door open, gripping the candle tightly. The swirling flame took the exit and they followed as it stretched out over the greyed bedroom carpet and into the dark hall where a soft wailing emanated. In a matter of seconds, the wailing grew louder and louder until their ears could barely stand it. The air around them grew cold, a mysterious draft chilling their skin and rustling through the velvet curtains of the bedroom.

 

Mori’s shadow demon suddenly appeared before the threshold, his arms outstretched, fingers gripping the panels tightly. Hani started backwards and Mori caught him around the shoulders, pulling him close. “Go back to the closet,” he whispered, prodding at his cousin’s shoulders, but Hani didn’t budge.

 

“Takashi,” he scolded at the crouching boy. “You can’t even stand!”

 

Mori struggled to push himself from his knees. “Just—”

 

Wheeling around to glare at him, Hani spanked him lightly across the hand before folding it in his own. “I’m not leaving you.”

 

Mori opened his bruised lips and then quickly closed them in the face of Hani’s resolute expression. He responded with a soft grin instead, lowering his face before Hani could catch his eyes. “Mm.”

 

Turning back to the monster before them, hands still linked, they waited apprehensively for its attack as it hovered in the threshold, writhing back and forth. But it never approached them. In fact, it seemed intent on remaining on the opposite side of the bronze doorstep. Hani blinked, eyes drooping down to survey the winding flame and following it to the demon’s chest. The end of the flame that melded with the shadow’s chest had darkened and the blackness swiftly funneled down the rest of the flame to spread over the usual orange.

 

“It’s being dragged in,” Hani breathed excitedly, noting the shadow’s mortified expression. He started to pull out of Mori’s grasp and the flame flickered momentarily.

 

“Mitsukuni!” Mori rushed to pull him close again.

 

“We have to stay together,” Hani realized aloud. Shadow Mori’s entire form billowed violently now, going in and out of transparency. His fingers unlinked from the door panels and expanded into sharp edged claws of black mist as they lunged toward Hani, an inhuman hiss escaping its ghostly lips. Mori pulled backward, dragging Hani with him, but the claws just passed through them.

 

“It can’t hurt us,” Hani whispered, watching as more and more of the shadow funneled through the swirling flame to be consumed into the wick. The wailing intensified and soon the demon had lost Mori’s form completely, gathering in a mass cloud of black, glittering mist above their heads, helpless to the pull of the flame. Finally, with a whooshing noise, the last of Mori’s shadow entered the candle. The now black flame danced erratically and then whistled before the usual orange yellow burned against the wick as if it always had.

 

Mori and Hani both stared aghast at the candle in silence until Hikaru and Kaoru exploded into the room, their chests heaving, sweat pouring from their brows. Breathing heavily, Hikaru kneeled over an ebony dresser, clutching its silver plated sides and Kaoru fell next to him, back sliding down the compartments.

 

“Wh--” Kaoru started. “Where did it go?”

 

“We saw it heading back this way,” Hikaru panted.

 

“Did it hurt you, Hani-senpai?!” they demanded at the edge of their breath.

 

“Um…” Hani responded dumbly, still blinking at the candle. He raised his fingers to brush over his cheek where the demon had marred him. Gone. “I think we figured out how to use the candle.” His eyes lit up and he tore across the room, his hands stretched toward the twins. “Quick, Hika-chan!” He thrust the candle into the older Hitachiin’s hand. “Tell Kao-chan you love him!”

 

“Eh…” Hikaru blinked at the candle, his breathing settling a bit as he crouched to sit down beside his brother. He lifted questioning eyes to Kaoru who just shrugged. “I lo—”

 

“Hold hands, Hika-chan!” Hani pushed impatiently, pushing them closer together.

 

Hikaru grasped Kaoru’s hand tightly, eyes determined as he faced him. Kaoru nodded in return, biting his lip, before grasping the candle as well with his other hand. They leaned into the small circle they’d formed.

 

“I love you, Kaoru,” Hikaru whispered with as much intensity as he could muster.

 

Kaoru nodded, squeezing tightly at Hikaru’s hand. “I love you too, Hikaru.”

 

They waited patiently for something to happen, both eying the candle. It simply flickered routinely, neither lengthening or winding into a funnel. Hani frowned.

 

“I don’t understand,” he pouted, leaning down to get a closer look at the flame. Mori crouched at his side, brow set in confusion. “It should be looking for Kao-chan’s shadow!”

 

Mori frowned, his fingers scrubbing thoughtfully at his chin. “Unless…”

 

_One of us didn’t mean it_ , the words ran fleetingly across Kaoru’s mind and this time, he knew it wasn’t his demon’s intrusion, but rather a seed that it had planted there, contorting and twisting his thoughts as it uprooted from his subconscious. _And I can guess who_. His lips tugging downward bitterly, he scooted away from his brother, their fingers slipping apart.

 

“Maybe they need to be closer to the shadow,” Mori finished, eyes darting down to meet his cousin’s.

 

“Maybe…” Hani muttered, reaching down to pick the candle from Hikaru’s hand to examine it further.

 

A thunderous clang suddenly echoed ominously throughout the mansion in a low pitch, striking once and then repeating twice more.

 

“The grandfather clock in the foyer,” Hikaru suddenly remembered aloud.

 

“It’s midnight,” Mori informed them, lifting his phone to his eyes. So they had about five hours until daybreak…

 

“One down,” Kaoru gave a weak smile, but the bitterness hadn’t completely evacuated his tone. “We better head back to meet the others.”

 

“Did you find Haru-chan?” Hani asked hopefully as they neared the door.

 

“No,” Hikaru grumbled, his fingers massaging lightly over his bottom lip. “MiLord and the rest are looking for her.”

 

Hani nodded, a slight frown on his lips before remembering something else. “Did you at least save the cake?!”

 

Mori and the twins couldn’t help but snort mirthfully at the question. His fixation on cake usually seemed completely alien to them, but tonight when their worlds had been slipped upside down, it was the most normal thing. And that lifted their spirits just a bit.

 

“Yeah, Hani-senpai,” Kaoru grinned at his senior.

 

“We left it down the hall,” Hikaru snickered.

 

Hani let out a sigh he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in and gave a soft squeeze at Mori’s hand on his shoulder. They’d defeated Mori’s shadow and there was cake. That was at least two pluses. As they filed out of the bedroom, Hikaru and Kaoru helping to support Mori where he needed it, Hani glanced down curiously at the cursed object in hand, gasping. A single spot of the black candle had paled to a pristine white once again.


	13. Chapter Thirteen

Haruhi sprinted through blackness, nearly breathless. Whatever chased her gave no indication of its identity, but she knew something was there. She knew that if she slowed down— even for a moment— it would swallow her whole. Why couldn’t she shake it?  
With no destination in particular set, she continued down the corridor until she reached its end. Frustrated, she threw her palms against its wall, cool and clear. A mirror. It should have reflected her likeness, but there was nothing here. Fingering the cool smoothness absentmindedly, she finally glimpsed something beyond. A scowling expression floated in the dark, eyes bleeding red. Its gaping mouth opened wider and the floor seemed to give out beneath her. Mouth opened in a scream, nothing but silence followed as she tumbled into nothingness.

With a gasp, her eyelids parted. No running through dark corridors. No fateful demon mirrors. No detached scowling faces. The darkness still remained though. She sighed in relief. What a terrible nightmare. But at least it had been a nightmare… Of course. What else could be expected after the story Nekozawa had told?

Sighing, she sat up in the same dreary bed that she had started the night out in. The ordeal had seemed so long and drawn out that she couldn’t believe she had dreamt it all in one night. She pulled her knees in to herself, gaze drifting suspiciously toward the door like a child anxious about the bogeyman. It was closed as she’d left it. She turned back to the window. The same lonely moonlit night, empty corridors facing off across the courtyard. Giving another great sigh, she raked her fingers through her brown tresses, pushing her sweat slicked bangs from her eyes. She couldn’t believe she’d let Nekozawa’s story affect her so much… The nightmare had been so vivid. She shuddered at the memory of the “shadow demons”. They’d seemed so frighteningly real that Kyoya, Hani and Hikaru might be offended… A faint smile crossed her lips. She’d be sure not to tell them… And Tamaki… An image of the ashen faced, limping Host King stumbling to her rescue resurfaced and the recollection chilled her. She’d been so scared for him. Her gaze trailed down to her fingers. They were trembling. She was suddenly overcome with an intense need to check in on the boys that she’d spent all weekend wishing she could take a break from. Her eyes landed on the digital clock against her nightstand. 1:00 AM it flashed in red. She wondered how she would justify waking them up… Maybe if she just called her father. He would be working around now anyway…

Sighing, she lifted the receiver of the antique phone on her nightstand. Nekozawa had assured them that they were all working in perfect condition. She placed it to her ear. Dead silence.

A jolt of something familiar wracked through her as she placed the phone down upon the hook. Swallowing hard, her eyes followed the wires down from the phone and to the walls. Everything was intact. Tamaki and the twins had called her repeatedly on the phone to check on her before bed. What had happened between then and now?

Taking a deep breath, she steadied herself back down onto the grey comforter. She was sure there was a logical explanation. Just five more hours till morning. She turned away from the nightstand and back to the room. That’s when she got a good look at it. Her dressers had been opened, closets ransacked. The desk was askew, books knocked from the surface. She realized even the bed she was lying on had been tilted. As if someone had been looking for something.

Her breathing began to come faster. But how? She wasn’t that light of a sleeper, but something like that definitely would have woken her up. And she didn’t sleepwalk. Unless…

“I wasn’t in the room,” she whispered to herself, her body going numb and cold. She wasn’t in the room and what they’d been looking for was her. But she would have had to be in the room. None of that was real. It couldn’t have been real.

She felt a sharp pain on her shoulder and immediately reached up to seize it. Her eyes widened as she fingered the broken skin. Another memory of Hikaru’s shadow leaning over her from behind, his teeth grazing the area. Her surprised shriek. The phone recording everything…

She was hyperventilating now, she realized. Time to calm down. She had cut herself in her sleep before. And sleeping next to a splintering window sill wasn’t exactly safe… But still… She eased up to a 90 degree angle again and gazed around the gloomy, silent room. She caught the picture of the lone, ominous castle on the hill and bit her lip… Just to be sure…

Taking a flashlight from one of the open drawers, she made her way toward the door. With a deep breath, she gripped the old brass knob tightly. She had to confirm that everything was okay. That he was okay. She saw his back hitting the wall with a sickening noise, Kyoya’s shadow hovering behind him with an eerie grin and her heart drummed in her chest. Swallowing her pride, she started to yank the door open and nearly yelped when it opened for her.

“Going somewhere?” the familiar face asked even though he plainly had no intention of letting that happen. The demon promptly shut the door behind him.

Haruhi backed away, her limbs suddenly heavy. “You’re not Hikaru.”

Hikaru’s shadow frowned, its amber eyes deadening. “We’ve been over this.”

A sickness seized her stomach as she completely grasped the fact that her “nightmare” was very much real. “Why did you bring me here?”

“Because it’s the last place your friends would think to look again,” the shadow explained as if it were embarrassingly clear. “You didn’t think you’d dreamed it all?” it asked with a dark amusement. “Did you?”

Haruhi bit her lip too harshly. She had hoped… She balled the material of her cotton tee into a fist. “So Tamaki-senpai…”

“Don’t worry about him,” the demon cut her off impatiently. “I’m sure Kyoya will take good care of him.” He grinned sardonically as he approached her, his arms folded behind his back. He surveyed her curiously like one would an animal in captive. In return, she watched him with baited breath. Kyoya’s shadow had been undeniably sinister, but respectful overall. He’d been calm, collected, somewhat kind even. But if the actual Hikaru’s attitude was any indication of his shadow’s behavior, this experience would no doubt be very different.

As if confirming her fears, the demon leaned forward in a lightning fast motion and seized her by the wrist. She let out a small cry of surprise as it yanked her forward into a chilly embrace, its arms encircling her waist from behind.

“Wh— why did you make a deal with Kyoya-senpai’s shadow?” she asked out of both curiosity and an attempt to keep him distracted from whatever he was about to do. “What do you need me for?”

He chuckled, his chin resting on the shoulder he had marked. Still grinning, he dipped in to give the scratch a chaste kiss. Her breath drew in sharply, her frame tense. The sensation seemed to echo from his lips and reverberate through out her body, each vibration stronger than the last as it resonated somewhere deep within her. The feeling wasn’t necessarily painful— quite the opposite in fact— but the temporary loss of control wasn’t exactly relieving. In an attempt to escape it, she started to pull from his embrace, but the stone hold would not budge and she ended up stumbling forward against him.

“So clumsy,” the demon teased, cat-like eyes glittering under the moonlight. “Maybe you should lie down?” He eased her onto a black leather chaise with grey tasseled throw pillows.

“Wh— ” she started, finding her voice again and realizing she was breathing a bit too hard. “What just happened?”

He only stared down on her, his fingers roving inquisitively through the fine chocolate tendrils of her bangs, over the crook of her neck and swiping across her shoulder again.

She gasped as the sensation followed like a spark igniting and combusting. Gripping the edge of the chaise tightly, she leaned into her knees, her cheeks reddening. “What’s…” she whispered and then her eyes grew wide. “The mark.” She immediately seized the red spot on her shoulder though it didn’t seem to have the same effect as the demon’s touch. “This is a mark.”

Smirking, Shadow Hikaru applauded at her epiphany. “Ouran Academy’s finest,” he remarked dryly, kneeling down to perch at the opposing end of the chaise, still watching her with intrigue. “I thought you’d have figured that out by now…”

“But…” She had gathered her bearings again, hands folded as she stared intensely down into her lap.

“Don’t worry.” He crept over her like a tiger cornering its prey. “It won’t hurt you.”

She sank deeper into the leather as he leaned in, his cool hands catching the small of her back.

“Just give yourself over to me,” he breathed into her ear, his lips searching for the mark again and she instinctually moved both hands from her lap and pressed them ardently against his shoulders.

“But the mark is supposed to be for the one you care about the most,” she protested, her breathing labored with his weight pressing down on her.

His temple bulged slightly. “And your point is?”

“K— Kaoru—”

The mischievous sneer seeped from his expression to make way for stony indifference, a touch of derision playing somewhere under the surface. The look frightened her, but something in her chest loosened a bit. At least he wasn’t trying to pin her down anymore. If Hikaru’s shadow was anything like him, he might even withdraw into one of his moods. And while she didn’t fancy dealing with a moody shadow demon, she preferred it over his over friendly counterpart. A slight movement caught her attention and she realized the demon had tilted his head, a glimpse of mischief returning to its eyes. Dammit.

“What were you just thinking about?” it asked casually.

She blinked, the question catching her off guard. “Um…” What was the last thing she had said? “Kaoru… wouldn’t he be your most important person?”

“I see,” he nodded, grin growing ever more sadistic. “So you’d prefer I go after Kaoru?”

“N— No, of course not!”

He moved closer to her. “Isn’t that what you said?”

“No!” She pushed at his shoulders again, this time to no fruition. “He’s your brother,” she responded, more tremulously than she would have liked. “I only thought—”

“Maybe I’ll mark both of you then.” The shadow pulled back. “I should go find him now.”

“Ah…” She reached out, eyes wide and conflicted. “No…” She wanted the demon as far away from her as possible, but she didn’t want it to hurt Kaoru…

“What?” it stared down at her, eying her more closely than ever. He grasped her firmly by the chin. “What is it, Haruhi? You don’t want me to leave?”

She simply stared at him defiantly, her words clotting somewhere in the back of her throat.

“Or were you hoping I’d go after Kaoru so that you could escape?” he smiled, eyes manic.

“No!” she cried. “I wouldn’t—”

“Then why did you bring him up?!“ it demanded, its voice more forceful than she would have thought possible, piercing through her eardrums and reverberating throughout her head until dizziness overwhelmed her. She pulled out of his grasp and pressed her fingers against her temples. This was Hikaru’s moody side showing. He was trying to intimidate her. But then, it was a valid question. Why had she mentioned him knowing that just the suggestion could put him in danger? Why had she hesitated when the demon entertained the notion of finding him?

“Do you think he would have used your name to escape from me?” the shadow asked, a derisive smirk curving jaggedly up his lips. “That he wouldn’t have tried to stop me from leaving?”

Her mouth hung open. “No…” Kaoru would have immediately fought for her. Hikaru too. But she would done the same eventually, right? She was only caught off guard. The demon was attempting to manipulate her. The twins did this all the time on a decidedly less ruthless level. “You’re just trying to make me feel bad to weaken me,” she managed in a soft, but resolute voice. She gave a small grin. “Hikaru always…” She trailed off when a thought suddenly occurred to her and the pounding in her chest momentarily halted.

Cynical chuckling. “You’re just realizing now, aren’t you?” He leaned down to take her by the chin again, thumb massaging her cheek with surprising gentleness.

She swallowed hard and her eyes began burning.

“If I marked you, my human counterpart should be as good as dead.” His grasp tightened, the gentle thumb now pressing threateningly into her skin. He was angry. “It didn’t even occur to you, did it?”

The pressure from his trembling grip began to pain her, but she barely registered it, tears glazing over her eyes.

“He loved you,” he growled against her ear. “And he was nothing but a second thought to you.”

“Loved?” Her brow furrowed and she searched for more words, but she could do nothing but shake her head, a confusing blend of emotions brewing within. Anger and frustration. Fear and shock. Guilt.

For a moment it seemed as though he might drape those slender fingers around her neck and put her out of her misery, but his expression suddenly softened and his grip with it. “It’s alright, Haruhi. You grew up without a mother.” The demon sighed. “I wouldn’t expect someone as damaged as you to be anything but a self serving bitch.”

Haruhi lowered her gaze letting the tears obscure her vision completely. His words pierced through her resolve leaving a gaping hole. She could see nothing but a shadow passing as he leaned over her, his lips trailing the line from her neck to her shoulder. She couldn't bring herself to push him away.

“You owe me this much,” he breathed into her ear and she let him, the tears finally falling to splatter against the backs of her hands.

“Hikaru!”

Her eyes shot open, vision clearing. Both their gazes turned to the bedroom door. It now stood wide open. Hikaru snarled and she lurched forward, her hand outreached at the figure.

“Kaoru!” she cried. “You have to go!”

“Don’t act like you care now,” Hikaru’s shadow scowled. “And besides,” He turned to face his doppelgänger with much derision. “Thats not Kaoru.”

Haruhi drew in a breath and peered closer at the younger twin. He stepped further into the room, eyes vacant as though someone had sucked the life from Kaoru’s usually gentle, teasing expression and congealed it. A smirk curled over his mouth, but that wasn’t the most terrifying part. The sick feeling returned. Unmoving at the demon’s feet lay a battered, unconscious and undeniably human Hikaru.


	14. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry this chapter took so long. It's been a busy 2017 so far and then I couldn't get this chapter right. I actually rewrote it twice. I decided there was no way I was writing it a third time so I hope this suffices! Let me know what you think and thank you for your patience!

Meanwhile...

There was crackling in the distance.

  
_“A fireplace,” the blond explained as they peered into the blaze all at once. “A great affordable alternative to universal heating for commoners!” He scooted closer to where the girl with chestnut colored hair huddled near the fire. “Right Haruhi?” His voice lilted._

  
_Haruhi sighed, brown eyes slanting away from the hearth and toward him. “We have heating in our apartment, senpai,” she reminded him in a clipped tone. “And besides, everyone likes fireplaces.” Her gaze returned to the flames, licking at the edges of their prison, lively and bright. A smile blossomed on her lips. “It doesn’t really matter if you’re rich or poor.”_

  
_“True…” he agreed softly, his own gaze fixed on the twin flames reflected in her eyes._

Tamaki's eyelids parted and the red tinted darkness phased into the image of a fireplace burning just a meter or so away from where he lay. His weight pressed against something soft and cushioning, a rug he realized. Likely shaved from some poor beast’s hide. But it was comforting nonetheless. The gentle crackling of the wood soothed him, the fire’s warmth exuding a protective cloud around him. He didn’t want to move let alone think.

  
The memory from just the other night of the Host Club and the fireplace resurfaced and beckoned him back into its folds. Haruhi turned to him from the hearth, her features soft. But this time instead of wild, lustrous flames, her eyes reflected nothing but darkness, pupils swallowing first the irises, and then the white whole. Her mouth opened in a soundless scream that somehow unnerved him in its silence while piercing through his illusions of safety all the same. The scream filled the air around him, filled his throat and lungs until the warmth of the fire seemed to suffocate him and the rug rose up to trap him in its skins. The crackle of the wood popped and snapped loudly in his ears egging at him, practically roaring “Get out!”

  
Before he had the chance to gather his bearings, he was scrambling away from the ground and rising to a crouched position. A spasm of pain so great he nearly crumpled to the rug again seared through his back. He recalled Hikaru’s shadow hurling him against the wall with so much force he’d seen white. Had he broken something?

  
Teeth gritted, he fumbled blindly for a wall aside the fireplace. Grasping the mantle, he pulled himself to a half hunched position. Damn, it hurt. Nearly gasping through the pain, he started to move away from the fireplace with no particular lead other than wherever Hikaru’s bastard of a shadow took Haruhi and that certainly didn’t seem to be here.

  
The mantle eventually ended and there wasn’t much to hold on to after that. His hands fumbled clumsily at the stone walls, but couldn’t manage enough friction to hold. Back burning and knees buckling, he stumbled forward, landing face first upon the rug where he started.

  
The pain seized him so fiercely that he couldn’t form a cohesive thought, only able to curl his knees into his torn, dirt tinged white tank top until he found a position that didn’t make him want to scream in agony. Once found, he lay as still as possible heaving labored breaths into the dusty hide. Only then did he notice a light overhead in the darkness. He hadn’t been facing this direction before…

  
The sconce shone dimly from the front of the room. A shadow passed over it and the numbness that seized him at the sudden movement proved a welcome distraction from the pain. He didn’t have to suffer the trouble of arching his aching neck up. The memory of his last moments of consciousness slowly, but surely returned to him and he was quite certain of the identity of the stranger in the dark.

  
Kyoya,” He grunted into the rug’s fur, teeth gritted. “You bastard.”

  
Soft rustling. The thing was moving toward him.

  
“You won’t be able to stand in that condition,” the hauntingly familiar voice warned him. “Even if you somehow reached the door, you’d never make it back down the stairs.”

  
The clap of footsteps on stone.

  
“At least not alive.”

  
Tamaki let out something between a growl and a cry, anger and hopelessness curdled into one anguished noise.

  
“Do you even know where you’re going?” the voice asked with too much composure, a hint of mockery poorly concealed in its tone.

  
“Ha— Haruhi,” he stammered the name that had been flipping over repeatedly in his mind all night.

  
Dry laughter. “That’s your problem.”

  
The footsteps closed in.

  
“You don’t think, Tamaki.”

  
Tamaki’s heart jumped in his chest as a shadow fell over him. He raised unwitting eyes to survey it, his breath immediately ceasing upon contact.

  
Kyoya’s discerning grey eyes had always possessed the power to root him fearfully to a spot on one of the Shadow King’s worst days. But if they’d been off-putting on particularly stressful evenings in the third music room under the waning sun’s glow or within the bustle of a lively commoners market, they were absolutely terrifying here cloaked in darkness and flame.

  
It stared down at him, a cobra set to strike. Its gaze pierced the blond with a burning intensity that he could barely stand, the rest of its features disjointedly lifeless and cool. A small, breathy whimper was all Tamaki could manage, the shadow’s words already evaporating along with his ability to process them.  
The demon went on, tone still frustratingly composed. “Do you think you’d be here now if I had come for you right away?” it asked, every refrain laced with condescension. “If I hadn’t planned and planted a bait that I knew both you and Hikaru would leap for?”

  
With those words, new courage bloomed in Tamaki’s chest. “Don’t call her—”

  
His protests ended in an agonized groan when the demon’s foot pressed into his side, the toe of the house shoe, pushing into his ribs.

  
“Thank you for doing exactly what I thought you would by the way.” It sneered at the reaction it had garnered. “I can always depend on you to do exactly what I predict you will.” It stooped down onto its knees and kneeled over the panting blond, Kyoya’s dark mane falling into its piercing eyes. Cool fingers brushed against Tamaki’s chin before slipping through his bangs and cradling his cheek as though it were porcelain. It willed their two gazes to meet until Tamaki faced him, fearful and questioning.

  
“Does this mean you…” Tamaki started tremblingly, pausing as if searching. “... love me?” he squeaked.

  
The movement was minuscule at best, but the whites of the demon’s eyes expanded slightly lips tugging downward a fraction of a centimeter.

  
“I mean!” Tamaki stammered, his cheeks exploding in a faint shade of red. “Am I Kyoya’s person?! His most important—”

  
“An idiot like you?” Kyoya’s eyes ceased to taunt him from behind the glass, the curve of the demon’s lips rigid, nose wrinkled as if it smelled something rancid.

  
“Ah…” Tamaki swallowed hard. “I’m sorry,” he stammered though he wasn’t sure what he was apologizing for. Was the suggestion that Kyoya cared for him really that much of an insult? He supposed Kyoya did constantly deny that they were anything but the sons of two competing businessmen. Constantly denied that their partnership was based off of anything but practicality and material gain. Constantly denied.

  
Denial. Could shadow demons be in denial? His own certainly seemed to be… confident about his feelings for Haruhi. His cheeks colored with the memory. Perhaps Kyoya didn’t care so much about him after all. Maybe he really was just after money. Tamaki was the most wealthy of the bunch after all. He started to tell him that he’d brought plenty of it when the demon’s lips moved again.

  
“Yes.”

  
Tamaki blinked as the cool pad of its thumb pressed against his lower lip. “Yes?”

  
“Yes, he does and yes, you are,” It answered in a vaguely irritated tone before pulling away to stand. He turned back to the dimly lit area at the front of the chamber and toward a writing desk, a mess of papers strewn over its surface. “It’s embarrassing, you know.” It adjusted the glasses on the bridge of its nose before picking a sheet of parchment from the pile. “Being wrapped around the finger of the less intelligent son of your father’s business rival.” The paper clenched in his fist. “Working so hard for him and receiving nothing in return.” It turned to sneer at him, its features ghastly in the firelight. “Being cursed at and abandoned in the darkness for a mere commoner.”

  
“A mere commoner?” Tamaki asked, the anger quickly flooding into his voice and then his limbs as he shot upward, the pain immediately stabbing him in the back. He contorted backward, hissing, and the demon watched him, tilting its head in amusement, but not the least bit surprised.

  
“I figured _that_ part would catch your attention.”

  
Tamaki struggled to right himself to a position that didn’t agonize him. He felt foolish and predictable under the demon’s gaze. And somehow guilty.

  
“S- Sorry I yelled at you back there…” he stammered, eyes drooping to the rug. “I…” What was he doing? This wasn’t his best friend! He’d never gotten a chance to apologize to the actual Kyoya. The actual Kyoya would be a memory if he didn’t escape from this monster. “Stop trying to confuse me!” he snapped, head shooting up, amethyst ablaze. “I might have messed up this time, but Kyoya doesn’t work for nothing! He gains a lot from the Host Club!”

  
“Kyoya is weak,” the shadow cut in casually as if it were the truest thing in the world. The cobra returned, slinking behind the glass, dark energy growing and pulsating out and around him, a fog possessed. “Why else would he sacrifice so much to keep an idiot like you happy?”

  
“Because that’s what friends do!”

  
“Do they?” The demon raised an eyebrow. “Do you drop everything to actualize every one of his foolish whims?” It moved toward him, the parchment crinkling in its trembling fists. “Work tirelessly into the evenings to make sure his ridiculous plans go off without a hitch?”

  
Tamaki’s muscles tensed, a pressure building deep within him. A pressure so uncomfortable he fought to press it back down, but it endured.

  
“Spend an entire vacation seeking out his ailing lost mother?”

  
“Don’t talk about my mother!” Tamaki cried, but conflict roiled inside his mind, dizzying him, drying his mouth and tongue. Was his friendship with Kyoya really that lopsided? Is that why Kyoya always seemed at least semi-annoyed with him? The demon seemed pleased at his outburst.

  
“Whatever power you have, it’s been working.” It stopped just short of him, unfolding the parchment in hand. “But now it’s time I cast a spell of my own.”

  
“A spell?” Tamaki narrowed his eyes at the parchment. Peculiar, yet oddly familiar symbols marked it. His breath caught, the pieces clicking into place. “The showroom.” He recalled the scattered texts, slanted tables and relics cracked and shattered on the stone. “It was you.”

  
“The rest of you seem to be forgetting that we’re standing on a black magic gold mine,” it replied, smoothing out the parchment he’d been crumbling just moments ago. “Of course I was the only one listening to that moron ramble on.”

  
Tamaki swallowed hard. He’d been too busy falling victim to the twins’ pranks and worrying about Haruhi to catch the bulk of Nekozawa’s lecture on the the “dark arts”, but it sounded like the perfect ammunition for a shadow demon. But even so…

  
“Why?” he blurted. “All you need to do is…” The words crumbled the moment he realized what he was about to say.

  
“Mark you?” The shadow kneeled down on one knee, grey eyes piercing into him and holding him in place. Before he could move to stop them, cool fingers reached up to caress his chin, willing their eyes to meet. “Would you let me?”

 Tamaki felt the ground part beneath him, the rushing sensation of falling. “No,” he managed to croak out, almost a plea as he doubted he could stop the shadow from doing much of anything in this condition.

  
“I didn’t think so.” The fingers fell from his face, the stilling gaze releasing him. The blond fell forward onto the rug, palms first.

  
“I could force you.” Kyoya’s shadow went on. “But you’d never forgive me. And besides,” He felt the fingers briefly combing through his hair. “I’ll need your obedience for later.”

  
“Later?” Tamaki asked, finding his voice again.

  
“Once I’ve secured this body, I’ll need to attend to my father and brothers.”

  
“Attend to?” Tamaki nearly whimpered.

  
“Once that’s done, we’ll merge Suoh and Ootori into one corporation. A super conglomerate.”

  
Tamaki’s throat tightened, heart storming in his chest.

  
“Don’t worry,” the demon assured him, “I’ll let you be president, but only because you make an excellent frontman.” It ran a corner of the parchment so roughly against his cheek, he worried it might break the skin. “Beautiful, charming, empty-headed and pathetically gullible.”

  
Tamaki pushed its hand away still struggling to gather his breathing. If he didn’t escape, the Shadow King’s reign of terror wouldn’t just end with him and Kyoya. It meant to damn both their families to hell.

  
“Force will only go so far to keep a mouth as big as yours quiet,” it explained dryly. “I’ll need something stronger if I want your silence.”

  
“I’m not giving you anything!” the blond shook away from the parchment, leaning backwards so that his weight pulled him farther from the demon. He scrambled off of the rug and onto stone, crowding himself in a corner where cobwebs swept over his back. He couldn’t stand, but he could crouch. If he could just crouch out of here, he could escape this bastardization of his best friend and get back to reason he’d come here in the first place…

  
“Where’s…” he grunted, breathing labored, bangs curtaining his eyes. “Haruhi?!”

  
“With Hikaru’s shadow I’m guessing,” Shadow Kyoya shrugged with so much nonchalance that Tamaki could have burst. “Maybe after he’s done with her, I’ll retrieve her myself.”

  
Tamaki gritted his teeth, the burning in his blood unbearable.

  
“A commoner wife would ingratiate me to the public after all.”

  
“You…” Tamaki growled.

  
“I’d let you have her whenever you wanted." It sneered, pushing him, goading his control to its breaking point.

  
“SHUT UP!” Tamaki flew at him, the pain in his muscles and joints forgotten, numbed by pure rage. The next moments phased together so swiftly that he barely registered the parchment and Kyoya’s glasses falling toward the ground. Suddenly his back meshed with the animal skins, the air gusting from his lungs. Before he could make a desperate gulp for more, cold steely claws found their way around his neck and clamped down in an unrelenting grip. The demon’s knees pressed into the fur on either side of him, caging him in.

  
“Ky—” he attempted to get out, but nothing made it past his lips save for ugly strangled noises, a frantic whimper escaping every other second. Pressure built in his head and behind his eyes and stars began to bloom into his vision like bright white insects squirming in place. Soon the scatter grew to a swarm and an accompanying buzzing noise filled his ears.

  
“Is it fun being an idiot?” the Shadow King snarled, its teeth bared. If its eyes had been intimidating under the glass, that was nothing compared to the cobra unsheathed. Bottomless black pupils enlarged, swallowing the grey and then the whites of its eyes, sucking Tamaki into a silent, dark vacuum.

  
“Being so unaware of everything around you that you’d blindly lead your friends to their death?”

  
Guilt sprouted in his chest and sent tendrils creeping into his throat and guts until he wanted to scream or vomit. Unable to do either, he simply thrashed against the icy grip around his neck, trembling hands clawing in vain.

  
“So weak and selfish that you depend on others to think for you, to anticipate your every whim?”

  
The hold tightened on the last word and the swarm of white began to go dark, one star at a time. It was so angry… Hot tears clouded Tamaki's eyes, shielding him from the hateful gaze on his best friend’s features. Did Kyoya really hate him this much? If what Nekozawa said was true, their shadows’ feelings reflected their deepest and darkest. So that meant buried down somewhere…

  
“Whose going to save you now?” the taunt distracted him from his thoughts and he struggled to face the shadow from beneath the haze of dark fog and tears.

  
“Ky…” he forced through the unbearable pain in his throat, expecting the delicate tissue that held his voice together to snap and crumble at any moment. With the last of his energy, he raised his trembling hand to where the demon’s face should have been.

  
_I’m sorry_ , he thought it, unable to speak.

  
_I’m going to die here_. The blackness encased him completely and then he was falling. _We’re all going to die here and it’s my fault_.

  
The claws dragging him under suddenly withdrew and a piercing light appeared overhead, shredding through the dark. He surfaced quickly as if something willed him back into a pain so raw and intolerable that he wanted to submerge again. For as much as he wanted to breathe for the last eternity or so, the much desired oxygen burned terribly as it reentered his throat, lungs alternating between feeling as if they would burst or collapse as he heaved and sputtered against the rug, blond tresses soaked and matted with sweat.

  
Familiar hands cupped his face and he immediately cringed, jerking away in panic.

  
“No—!”

  
“Tamaki,” it spoke soothingly, a sharp contrast to the heavy, growling tone it used just moments ago, fingers massaging softly through his bangs. “Forgive me.”

The glasses had been placed on the bridge of his nose again, grey eyes showing the faintest hint of remorse before the fire’s glint obscured them.

  
“You…” Tamaki started, his breathing still noticeable, but quieting all the same. He wasn’t even sure what he meant to say, he was so exhausted. Too exhausted to think, to move, to resist as the demon leaned in to press a chilled kiss against his lips.

  
The chills curled and twisted painfully up his spine, a distant impulse to fight prickling at the hairs of his back.

  
But what was the point? He’d already screwed up so much already, he probably deserved this. Kyoya— the real one— would have navigated this so much better than he had. He couldn’t blame his shadow for hating him. Fresh tears glassed over his eyes as the demon released his lips only to trail a line of hungry kisses along his bruised neck.

  
_You might as well surrender_ , he told himself, the voice so defeated that he almost didn’t recognize it as his own. _Any attempt you make to help just makes more trouble for them._

  
Teeth brushed over his collarbone and he winced, his resolve sharpening. If Kyoya’s shadow was like this, what was happening to Haruhi? _He couldn’t just not try_.

  
_You can’t fight him_ , his own defeated voice replied.

  
He pushed weakly with his aching arms against the demon’s shoulders to no avail.

  
_Your poor judgement is the reason you all ended up here in the first place._

  
He tensed against the shadow, shoulders quaking.

  
_Now they won’t make it out of this alive because of you._

  
His breathing must have increased as the demon shushed him gently, cool breath against his ear.

  
_Just stop trying_ , the voice in his head advised. _When has it ever worked for you?_

  
That wasn’t right. He’d been successful. With his grades. With his classmates. With the girls at the Host Club. He made them happy. Didn’t that mean something?

  
_What about your grandmother?_

  
His throat squeezed shut. “I’m…” he whispered.

  
_Trying?_ his own voice mocked him. _Is it working?_

  
His throat clogged with thick emotion, the demon’s hungry kisses an afterthought against his numbing skin.

  
_It’ll never work, will it? ,_ it asked sadly. _She won’t accept you. How can she?_

  
He trembled uncontrollably, now a child again wrapped alone in a comforter too big for him, his mother sick with a disease acquired after childbirth weakened her immune system. A disease she'd acquired because of him. His father unable to remain in the country because of him. His grandmother with her harsh words condemning them both because of him. Whispered words in shameful tones about him. Because of him.

  
Because he was a mistake, a bastard, a stain upon his family’s name. Because if they could do it over again, if they could go back, he probably would never have existed.

  
He was never supposed to be here.

  
_You were never supposed to be here._

  
Something inside of him splintered and he felt as if he were falling again.

  
_Let go._

  
His limbs fell limply against the rug, tears streaming, mind drifting away from the room, so far removed from the demon, he barely registered its presence.

  
“Tamaki.”

  
Kyoya's voice whispered in his ear and he blinked, the room slowly slanting into focus again. But the Shadow King wasn’t looking at him. Across the dimly lit room, unmoving in the fire’s light crouched a hunched figure. It glanced up at once, violet flickering maliciously. Tamaki winced, sinking back into the demon’s arms.

  
“Get out of his mind,” Kyoya’s voice floated threateningly over head and he rose from his place beside Tamaki. “You’ll break him.”

  
Tamaki’s eyes widened as his own features faced him cruelly from across the room.

  
“That was kind of the point,” the cutting voice that had only existed in his head up until now spoke, disappointment showing plainly upon its features. “He couldn't very well find my Haruhi in mental shambles could he?”

  
“Y— You—” Tamaki spoke through tears, his voice trembling.

  
“Oh come now,” his shadow frowned down at him, arms crossed. “I gave you the bait, but you filled in most of the blanks, didn't you?” It shot him a knowing smile and Tamaki’s eyes lowered to the stone floor feeling embarrassed suddenly. As if someone knew the dirty little secret he’d tried so desperately to scrub away his entire life. The truth he normally hid even from himself. Now it had settled deep inside his stomach and clung there, thick and viscous. He couldn’t stop shaking.  
His shadow dismissed him with a half piteous look before turning on Kyoya’s. “Where is she?” It glanced from one side of the chamber to the next, searching.

  
Kyoya’s shadow did not respond, simply eying him vigilantly as he moved from one corner to the next. The blond finally turned to smirk at him, fingers rubbing at his chin thoughtfully.

  
“It’s like you to hide her away.” It ran its fingers along a stack of texts on the writing desks. “After all, if I succeed, you’d lose your precious golden boy.”

“It’s like you to be clueless as to where to find her.” Shadow Kyoya smirked at the blond’s scowl. “And precious?” it frowned, its eyes shadowed beneath the glasses “He’s merely a means to an end.”

“Is he?” the blond shadow removed a writing quill from the desk, a playful grin on his lips. It spun around just as playfully, a triumphant grin in tow. “I always knew you wanted me.”

Kyoya’s features chilled, all pretenses at emotion or humanness sinking away.

“Lonely rich boy with daddy issues.” It lifted a hand to run its fingers through blond bangs and slip them gracefully down its neck. “Its only natural that you—”

“You forged a bond with him earlier,” Kyoya’s shadow cut in, stone faced. Thats how you found us and got into his head. I didn’t think you’d be smart enough.”

The other demon pouted. “And I came to make peace with you.” He neared Kyoya’s shadow and Tamaki tensed as he reached over him to curl a hand over its cheek. “We’d be unstoppable together.”

A bitter smile curved over Kyoya’s demon’s lips as it picked up and dropped the other’s hand from its person as if it were a rodent.. “I’ll pass. You’ll try to usurp me the first chance you get.”

The playful features hardened, the seductive charmer slipping away.

“You’ll fail miserably no doubt, but I’d prefer not to make the trouble. Besides,” Shadow Kyoya patted Tamaki’s head lightly. “He’s easier to control.”

Shadow Tamaki’s posture tensed, arms crossing again. “I hope you realize you’ve got more to worry about than me and a group of humans.”

“I’m prepared.”

It shrugged, hands diving into the blue pajama pockets as it turned toward the chamber door. “Then I guess since you wont join me or tell me where Haruhi is, I have no business here.”

Shadow Kyoya smirked, a cold glint in its eyes. “You think I'll let you leave?”

Shadow Tamaki returned the smirk and, with a sudden flash of movement, one hand emerged from his pocket and hurled the point of the quill he’d been nursing directly at Tamaki’s face.

Kyoya’s shadow snapped around and dove down to seize the quill before it could pierce the blond's forehead. When he opening his hand again, it bled black, a deep cut oozing at the center of its palm.

“Just a means to an end?” The words floated about the room and when Kyoya’s demon turned back to search for their owner, it had vanished.

The shadow sighed. “I’m letting this human’s sentimentality rub off on me.”

Tamaki just stared at the place that his shadow last stood, still trembling, all the emotions he’d been whirl-wound through in the past hour ricocheting through him. He was useless like this. Worthless. Stuck, he realized. And he hadn’t the first clue of how to escape. Or what he would do if he did. He needed his friends. Haruhi. The twins. His senpais. Kyoya...

As if on cue, Kyoya’s shadow held out his arms for him and for some strange reason he obliged, arms folding around the demon’s cool form, tears edging along the rims of his eyes. Fingers entwined in his blond tresses as he began to speak.

  
“Please… Haruhi…" He sobbed, trailing off. "I’ll give you anything.”

“Tamaki.” The Shadow King pulled him closer, cold grey eyes almost sympathetic as it pressed a gentle kiss against his damp cheek.  “After tonight, you'll give me everything.”

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed. Give me your thoughts! Sorry I left the last chapter at a cliffhanger. We'll get back to Haruhi and Hikaru next chapter.


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